Broadcom, among the world’s largest semiconductor companies by market capitalization, traces its corporate history to Broadcom Corporation, founded in 1991.
Broadcom Corporation was established in Irvine, California, by Henry Samueli and Henry T. Nicholas III. It became known for communications semiconductors used in networking, broadband, and wireless technologies. In 2016, Avago Technologies acquired Broadcom Corporation and adopted the Broadcom name.
The present company is Broadcom Inc., led by CEO Hock Tan. It develops semiconductor products for networking, storage, broadband, wireless communications, and industrial applications, and it also owns major infrastructure-software businesses.
The history can be confusing because “Broadcom” refers both to the original company and the later corporation formed through acquisition. Broadcom Inc. is also distinct from Broadcom Corporation as a legal entity. The 2018 attempted acquisition by Qualcomm was blocked by the United States government and did not occur.