T.J. RODGERS funds MIT research laboratory in electronics
T.J. Rodgers, founding CEO of Cypress Semiconductor Corporation, has announced an agreement with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) to fund the "T.J. Rodgers RLE Laboratory" with a $5 million gift.
The Research Laboratory of Electronics (RLE) is MIT's leading entrepreneurial interdisciplinary research organization. $3.5 million of Rodgers' $5 million gift derives from the payment received by Rodgers under the Cooperation and Settlement Agreement reached with the Cypress Board of Directors following the election by Cypress shareholders of Rodgers' two nominees to the Cypress Board on June 20, 2017. Rodgers said,
"The Research Laboratory in Electronics (RLE) at MIT is a hallowed institution that invented 10-centimeter radar as part of our World War II effort. It is a cross-functional laboratory that applies electronics to fields of science, including quantum computation, biomedical science, atomic physics, photonic materials and energy. I am proud to help MIT redesign and enhance the RLE laboratory with advanced equipment. I strongly believe this laboratory will change our lives." MIT Professor of Electrical Engineering Marc Baldo said,
"It is a great privilege and responsibility to serve as Director for the MIT Research Laboratory of Electronics. We are proud of our origins in the RadLab and proud of our continuing tradition of creatively tackling important problems. Dr. Rodgers' gift will prepare us for the next frontiers. This new facility within RLE will demand that we excel, and we are very grateful for the opportunities this new facility will create for generations to come." MIT Professor of Electrical Engineering Steven Leeb said,
"America's research universities are our society's gift to itself, the fertile fields that help provide technology to enhance human abilities and enrich all our lives. We are incredibly fortunate to live in a nation that has thrived not only through collective courage, craft and commitment, but also through intellect and invention. Dr. Rodgers' has spent his life as a leader and innovator creating value in and through technology, and making opportunity available for others. I am beside myself with gratitude in recognizing his genius, his generosity, and his grace in repeatedly opening doors for the next generations. This gift will create a new proving ground for our faculty and students and thereby bring new technical miracles to fruition."
