The Intel 4004 microprocessor: what constituted invention?

Investigates the context for the development of one of the earliest microprocessors, the Intel 4004. It considers the contributions made by Intel employees, most notably Marcian E. "Ted" Hoff, Jr. and Federico Faggin, and the contributions other people made to this development who are not generally known, most notably Tadashi Sasaki and Masatoshi Shima. This paper represents a case study of how corporate and national cultures affect technological development and of the many aspects of invention, including conceptualization, logical design, engineering, fabrication, capitalization and marketing.