Technology - DAN REICH

Google, Microsoft head to MadTown

April 29, 2008

The amount of countless hours I’ve spent in UW-Madison’s Engineering Hall, should earn me the “GAL” or “Get a Life” award. Instead I will receive a degree in Electrical Engineering from UW-Madison. And perhaps the same reasons I decided to attend this University, are now being considered by Google, as they too plan on setting up shop in Madison, Wisconsin.

In a statement to The Badger Herald, Google representatives said, “We are opening an office in Madison because the city offers an excellent quality of life, a deep local talent pool and commitment to education at all levels, including the University of Wisconsin.”

Photo © UW-Madison University Communications

And anyone that has ever stepped foot in Madison could agree with that statement. But being that Google is a worldwide leader in software and computer architecture, its main focus will be within the department of Electrical and Computer Engineering. Leading this Madison/Google operation will be “retired professor emeritus of Electrical and Computer Engineering James Smith and 1980s computer engineering graduate James Laudon.”

Add a new Biomedical research to the list as well, and Madison will continue to lead the way as one of the premier research facilities in the world.

Some other great programs within my department, that I have been lucky to be a part of.

WEMPEC – Wisconsin Electrical Machines and Power Electronics Consortium
WCAM – Wisconsin Center for Applied Microelectronic Devices

It is extremely rewarding to see that my department, its students, and faculty members, have yet another great achievement to add to the list.

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Investing in the Machines

Investing in internet companies is relatively straight forward. Find good people with a good idea, and let the programming begin. But what about all of the other industries out there? I recently read a post by GigaOM’s Stacey Higginbotham, titled “RIP Microprocessor Startups” discussing the issues and significant costs involved with chip-maker startups. A quote from her piece:

“I don’t want to believe it’s the end of startups trying their hand against the likes of AMD or Intel, but until we come to a breakthrough in materials, ways to reduce the IP hurdles or the cost of masks and design, entrepreneurial chip engineers will have to focus on power management and cooling, MEMS and RF.”

There is a bit of a catch 22 here. The scientific breakthroughs needed to make chip-making more cost effective are going to either come from the large chip makers themselves (Intel, AMD) or research institutions and universities. Either way, the chip makers maintain their lead in the market place (they may even buy up some of the patents), or the small startups will still require that big initial investment in the machines, lithography labs, clean rooms and every other expensive component needed.

Might it be beneficial for Intel to initiate a program with a model that looks like Y-Combinator or Betaworks, but for microprocessor design and manufacturing? If so, beneficial to who?