Glenn Henry (IT entrepreneur)

Glenn Henry (né Gaylord Glenn Henry; born July 26, 1942 Berkeley, California), is an American computer industry executive, cofounder of Centaur Technology, and inventor of computer technology at the advent and frontier era of the development of personal computers. He holds over 300 US patents.[1][2]

This article is about the IT entrepreneur. For the big band leader, see Glenn Henry (band leader). For the circus entertainer, see Glen Monroe Henry. For a disambiguation, see Glenn Henry.

Glenn Henry
Born (1942-07-26) July 26, 1942
Berkeley, California, U.S.
NationalityAmerican
Alma materCalifornia State University, East Bay
Occupation(s)Cofounder of Centaur Technology
Senior Vice President, Dell Computers

Education

In 1966, Henry earned a BS degree in mathematics from California State University, Hayward. The following year he earned a MS degree in mathematics.[2]

Career

Henry started his business career at IBM, where he worked for 21 years until 1988.[3] He was the instigator, lead architect and development manager responsible for the IBM System/32, IBM System/38 (forerunner of the IBM AS/400), and IBM RT PC (forerunner of Power systems).[4] He was appointed an IBM Fellow in 1985.

He went to work for Dell in 1988 as the company's first VP of R&D.[5][6][7] In 1993 he was Dell's Senior Vice President in charge of products. While working there, he discovered that it was not possible to buy computer processors for less than $160 wholesale, thereby constraining the ultimate retail price of the resulting computer.[7] In 1994, Henry left Dell and began working on a new Intel compatible design. Funding for this new processor was provided by IDT. His work lead to the foundation of Centaur Technology Inc. Centaur's first processor came to market in 1997. The company was subsequently bought by VIA Technologies in 1999.

Henry was the President of Centaur Technology until his partial retirement in 2019 (he still works part-time remotely). In addition to his management duties, he wrote microcode for the company's Intel compatible processors, and he designed hardware for several co-processors.

Honors

In 1985, Henry was named an IBM Fellow.[4] In 2016, Henry was named a "Distinguished Alumni" of California State University. In 2017, the Computer History Museum added Henry's oral history to their "key pioneers and contributors" history collection.[8]

References
  1. "List showing approximately 200 Patents by Glenn Henry," Internet FAQ Archives, Advameg, Inc. (Illinois) (retrieved April 17, 2015)
  2. "CPU Veteran Lobbies for Cheap PCs," EE Times, September 12, 2005
  3. Frank G. Soltis (2001). Fortress Rochester: The Inside Story of the IBM ISeries. Loveland, Colorado: 29th Street Press. p. 378. ISBN 1-58304-083-8. OCLC 55235488.
  4. "CEO Interview Glenn Henry founder of VIA Processor Subsidiary Centaur," by Rick Lehrbaum, LinuxDevices.com, June 9, 2004
  5. "Barriers & Solutions to High-performance x86 Processing" (seminar abstract), Computer Architecture Abstracts, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering; Department of Computer Science; University of Texas at Austin, Spring 1999
  6. Charles H. Ferguson; Charles R. Morris (1993). Computer Wars: The Post-IBM World. Beard Books. p. 63. ISBN 1-58798-139-4. OCLC 50164489.
  7. Al Reinert (September 1992). "Revenge of the Nerd". Texas Monthly. Vol. 20, no. 9. pp. 122, 160.
  8. "Oral History of Glenn Henry" (PDF). Computer History Museum. August 7, 2017.

Further reading
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