Diosdado Banatao Filipino entrepreneur and engineer working in the technology industry Date of Birth: 23.05.1946 Country: Philippines

Biography of Diosdado "Dado" Banatao

Diosdado "Dado" Banatao is a Filipino entrepreneur and engineer who has made a name for himself in the high technology industry. Born on May 23, 1946, in Iguig, Cagayan, a province in the Philippines, Banatao grew up in a financially struggling family. His father, Salvador, worked as a farmer and went to Guam for work when Banatao was nine, while his mother, Rosita, worked as a maid. Banatao had to walk barefoot on a dirt road to get to his elementary school.

After completing his secondary education, Banatao enrolled in the Mapua Institute of Technology, where he graduated with honors and earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering. Several employers, including the electric company "Meralco," were interested in hiring him, but Banatao chose to become a pilot trainee at the Philippine Airlines. He later joined Boeing in the United States, where he worked as a design engineer on the new commercial airliner, the Boeing 747.

While in the United States, Banatao obtained a Master of Science degree in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from Stanford University in 1972. He became a member of the Homebrew Computer Club, where he met Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak. Banatao worked for companies such as National Semiconductor, Commodore International, and Intersil. He created the first single-chip design for a 16-bit calculator based on a microprocessor.

In 1981, while working at Seeq Technology, Banatao invented the 10-Mb CMOS. He also contributed to the design of the first chipset for IBM PC/XT and IBM PC/AT personal computers, as well as the implementation of the concept of a local bus.

In 1984, Banatao and his business partner Francis Siu founded Mostron, a high-tech company focused on manufacturing motherboards. They brought Ron Yara from Intel to lead the company. In 1985, Banatao became one of the founders of Chips and Technologies, which earned $12 million in sales within the first four months of operation. A few years later, Chips and Technologies became a public organization.

In 1989, Banatao launched his third startup, S3 Graphics, in Santa Clara, California, together with Ron Yara. The company aimed to enhance the graphics capabilities of personal computers through a graphics accelerator. By 1996, S3 Graphics became the market leader in graphics chips, surpassing its strong competitor, Cirrus Logic. In the same year, Chips and Technologies were sold for $300 million.

In 2010, Banatao became the CEO of Ikanos Communications, following the resignation of Michael Gallett. Banatao and his family are actively involved in charitable activities. In the Philippines, he established the "Dado Banatao Educational Fund," which awards five educational grants annually to Filipino students with great potential in the field of technology. He also leads the "Philippine Development Foundation," which helps gifted children attend schools where they can fully develop their potential. Additionally, Banatao funded the construction of a modern computer center at his hometown school in Iguig, setting it apart from other educational institutions in the Philippines.