Walter J. Sanders III

Walter J. “Jerry” Sanders III co-founded Advanced Micro Devices (amD) in 1969. Under his leadership, AMD grew from being a “second-sourcer” of other companies’ products to its current position as the fourth largest semiconductor manufacturer in the united states.

Sanders also co-founded several prominent industry groups, including the Semiconductor Industry Association, the Santa Clara manufacturing group, the Semiconductor Research Corporation, and the Microelectronics and Computer Technology Corporation.

The Wall Street Transcript named Sanders the best Chief Executive Officer in the semiconductor industry in 1983, 1984, and 1985, and runner-up in 1991. Sanders received the Robert N. Noyce award from the Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA) in 1998. In 2001, he received the Medal of Achievement from the American Electronics Association (AEA), the nation’s largest high tech industry association. Named to the National Academy of Engineering in 2007, he was recognized “for leadership in product development and manufacturing in the semiconductor industry.”

Sanders is a long-time supporter of education. In his name, AMD endowed the first W. J. “Jerry” Sanders III -- Advanced Micro Devices Endowed Chair in Electrical and Computer Engineering, held by Professor Wen-Mei W. Hwu since 2001. AMD also sponsors the W. J. “Jerry” Sanders Creative Design Competition, which challenges student teams to construct robots to complete a specified task. The final face-off competition is a highlight of the annual College of Engineering Open House.

Degrees

BS, Electrical Engineering, 1958