TECHNOLOGY - Oct. 22, 1996

Exponential Unveils Fast Chip: A San Jose start-up company announced the speediest microprocessor yet, a chip able to run Macintosh software at up to 533 megahertz, more than twice as fast as current chips. Exponential Technology Inc. said its X-704 chip should be available in volume next spring. The company is one of several chip makers to unveil new products at the Microprocessor Forum this week in San Jose. The four-day conference marks the 25th anniversary of the microprocessor. Exponential started in 1993, with financial help from Apple Computer Inc. George Taylor, Exponential’s founder and chief technology officer, says the new chips will cost about $1,000 each, which would put them into high-end computers used mostly by graphic designers and creators of multimedia. Industry analysts said Exponential’s chip could give Apple’s Macintosh computers a boost.