A custom industrial controller designed at age 16 using an Intel 8008 processor and programmed in raw binary code provided the initial royalties that funded much of Andreas Bechtolsheim’s early education. This foundational experience in hardware design later paved the way for his pivotal role in shaping Silicon Valley’s networking infrastructure through his work at Stanford and several startups.
Academic Foundations and Early Work
Born in 1955 at Hängeberg in Finning, Bavaria, Bechtolsheim developed an early aptitude for electronics in his isolated childhood home. He participated in the Jugend forscht competition three times, securing a physics prize in 1974. After graduating with an engineering degree from the Technical University of Munich, he moved to the United States in 1975 via a Fulbright scholarship. He completed a master’s degree in computer engineering at Carnegie Mellon University in 1976 before enrolling as a doctoral student at Stanford University.
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Take the IQ test →The Creation of Sun Microsystems
While at Stanford, Bechtolsheim designed the SUN workstation, named for the Stanford University Network, which utilized research developed at the Xerox Palo Alto Research Center. Supported by the Computer Science Department and DARPA, the modular machine facilitated early Internet router development. In 1982, he left his studies to co-found Sun Microsystems alongside Vinod Khosla, Scott McNealy, and Bill Joy. As the lead hardware designer, he helped drive the company’s growth, which reached $1 billion in sales by 1988 with products like the SPARCstation 1.
Network Infrastructure and Acquisitions
Bechtolsheim departed Sun in 1995 to launch Granite Systems, a startup specializing in Gigabit Ethernet switches. Cisco Systems acquired the venture in 1996 for $220 million. He continued his networking career by co-founding Kealia, Inc. in 2001 alongside David Cheriton, focusing on server technology. Sun Microsystems acquired Kealia in 2004, leading to his return as chief architect. In 2005, he co-founded Arista Networks, eventually serving as its Chairman and Chief Development Officer starting in October 2008.
Angel Investment Strategy
Recognized as a prominent angel investor, Bechtolsheim notably provided $100,000 to Larry Page and Sergey Brin in September 1998, well before Google was legally incorporated. His investment portfolio emphasizes electronic design automation and networking. He backed companies such as Magma Design Automation, Co-Design Automation, and CrestaTech. His financial interests have also extended into mobile technologies, including a stake in the iPhone game developer Tapulous, which the Walt Disney Company acquired in 2010.
Fast facts
- Born: 1955, Hängeberg, Germany
- Education: Technical University of Munich, Carnegie Mellon, Stanford
- Co-founded Sun Microsystems: 1982
- First Google investment: September 1998
- Founded Granite Systems: 1995
- Founded Arista Networks: 2005
Questions readers ask
Did Bechtolsheim name Google?
No, claims that he coined the name Google are untrue.
How did he support his education as a teenager?
He designed an industrial controller at age 16, and the royalties from that product funded much of his schooling.
Achievements
- Educated at Stanford University, Carnegie Mellon University and Technical University of Munich
- Worked as computer scientist, inventor and businessperson
