On 15th of November 1971 the Intel Corporation put on general sale the Intel 4004 microprocessor.

The adverts stated “Announcing a new era in integrated electronics” as a fully integrated chip design.

Federico Faggin signed the 4004 with his initials because he knew that his silicon gate design embodied “the essence of the microprocessor”.

Today we think nothing of the size of the computers and devices we use – expecting them to be small, light and portable. The rapid advances made in 20thC technology are far too easy to forget.

On 15 October 2010, Faggin, Hoff, and Mazor were awarded the National Medal of Technology and Innovation by US President Barack Obama for their pioneering work on the 4004.

You can read more about the 4004 here: Intel’s First Microprocessor