Zilog

Zilog, Inc., previously known as ZiLOG (which stands for "Z (the last word of) integrated logic"), is a manufacturer of 8-bit and 24-bit microcontrollers, and is most famous for its Intel 8080-compatible Z80 series.Zilog was incorporated in California in 1974 by Federico Faggin, who left Intel after working on the 4004 and then the 8080 microprocessors. The company became a subsidiary of Exxon in 1980, but the management and employees bought it back in 1989 led by Dr. Edgar Sack.Zilog went public in 1991, but was acquired in 1998 by Texas Pacific Group. Curtis Crawford replaced Dr. Edgar Sack and changed the companies direction towards 32 bit Data Communications Processors. Bonds were sold against the company to fund the new developments, but after the Internet bubble burst in 2000 and the resultant reduction in customer demand for such products, Curtis Crawford was replaced by James (Jim) Thorburn who reorganized the company under Chapter 11 bankruptcy in late 2001 and refocused it back to the 8 and 16 bit microcontroller market.