For his impact on the semiconductor chip industry and the advancement of computing, Bill Holt M.S. ’79 received the School of Engineering’s highest honor, the Distinguished Engineering Alumni Award, recognizing alumni whose accomplishments in their professions, communities, and University service have set them apart. 

In Silicon Valley, the semiconductor industry exploded, in part, based on what’s known as Moore’s Law—the maxim that the computing power of integrated circuits would double about every two years. For more than 40 years, Bill Holt led the teams that delivered the efficiency, innovation, and cost reductions that drove the industry and proved Moore’s Law to be true. During his time at Intel, processors became 3,500 times more powerful and 90,000 times more energy efficient. You can read more about Holt and this endeavor in the Spring 2016 edition of this mag.

Beginning his career in DRAM development as a development engineer, Holt assumed a number of management roles before being elected corporate vice president in 2003 and taking on the management of TMG in 2005. Under his guidance, Intel consistently led the industry in revolutionizing transistor technologies. A consummate innovator and leader, he had a marked influence not only on his company, but on his industry—and the nation’s economy. In 2015, he received the Semiconductor Industry Association’s highest honor, the Robert N. Noyce Award for Longstanding Accomplishments on Behalf of Industry.