Why These Chips FAILED: The Silicon Graveyard (Transmeta, Itanium, Zilog & More)
Description
The Chip Graveyard – Halloween Special | Chips Weekly
Welcome to a spooky special edition of Chips Weekly! 👻
Today we’re digging up the most ambitious chips that failed — the ones that almost changed the future of computing… but didn’t make it.
In this episode, Diana explores how billion-dollar ideas like Transmeta’s Crusoe, Intel’s Itanium, and Zilog’s Z8000 ended up buried in tech history — and what their ghosts can still teach the industry today.
🪦 Featured Fallen Chips
• Transmeta – software-powered x86 revolution that fizzled
• Intel Itanium – massive gamble on a brand-new architecture
• Zilog Z8000 – great timing… for someone else
• PLUS: Cyrix • DEC Alpha • Sun SPARC
🧠 What You’ll Learn:
✔ Why being early can be just as risky as being late
✔ How ecosystems and compatibility decide winners
✔ Why some “failures” push innovation forward
If you’re into semiconductors, CPU history, and tech what-ifs, this Halloween-themed deep dive is for you.
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