2023 : A Year In Chips
And a New Year Annual Subscription Special Offer
As 2023 draws to a close, it’s a good time for a look back at the year, and to share a little about what’s ahead in 2024.
I know many readers love data, so here are a few facts and figures about ‘The Chip Letter’ in 2023:
Posts : 75
Views : > 500,000
New Subscribers : > 7,000
A big thank you to everyone who has supported The Chip Letter over the year, to everyone who has liked, commented on, or shared posts.
A particular thank you to everyone who has recommended the newsletter over the year, including:
all of whom write really terrific Substacks.And, finally, a huge thank you to everyone who has taken out a paid subscription. Your support has enabled me to spend more time on the newsletter during 2023. It really wouldn't be possible without you. If you’d like to join this group of supporters, and get a special 20% off New Year offer, then see the end of this post or just click here.
A Year In The Chip Letter
A small sample of 2023 posts that were highlights in one way or another:
Most Read Post
We’ve covered technology from a wide range of famous, valuable and important companies: Apple, Nvidia, Intel and Arm and many others. The most read post of the year, though, was a bit of a surprise to me :
Perhaps though I shouldn’t have been surprised. Erlang seems to be a language that many people are aware of, which has had a big impact at WhatsApp, but which has remained decidedly ‘niche’.
Look out for another programming language post early in the New Year.
Most Commented Post
I was a little uncertain about whether a post on “minis’ would attract much interest. I was wrong!
It was wonderful to see so many insightful comments, particularly from readers who have used ‘minis’ over the years and were happy to share their experiences.
My Favourite Post
My personal favourite celebrated the 65th anniversary of the Integrated Circuit.
After all, there would be no Chip Letter without Jack Kilby’s and then Robert Noyce’s early work, more than six decades ago. It was great to be able to celebrate the birthday, but not the retirement, of the IC!
A Year in Technology Substack
It’s also been a great year in technology Substack more widely. I’d like to mention just a small sample of the posts I’ve enjoyed most over the year.
‘s SemiAnalysis has had a remarkable year, breaking a number of great stories on the ongoing rivalries in AI hardware. I’m going to highlight a lower profile post though, on ‘The Future [and the past] of the Transistor’, as a personal favourite.
There is a lot going on in semiconductors in Japan at the moment. Who better, then, to turn to than
and his recent post on his Connect Substack. Jon links to his conversation on the Circuit Podcast - direct links here: Transistor | Apple | Spotify | Google. It’s a really engrossing and informative discussion. Highly recommended.And finally, Interviewing my mother, a mainframe COBOL programmer from
. It’s an entertaining read on a craft that has a low profile, but is still vital.This position is the most important one in the bank, at least from a technical standpoint. If, let’s say, my mother and everyone on her team would quit their job, the bank would go under within a matter of weeks if they’re lucky. They have a rotation of people on her team being available 24/7. I remember when I was younger and she had to take a taxi to work in the middle of the night on a Sunday to fix a dead-lock problem.
The rest of the post is just as engrossing.
2024 Preview
So much for 2023. What about 2024?
Already in the pipeline are posts on The History of Microcontrollers, The Past and Future of Moore’s Law, Part 2 of the Motorola 6800 Story, more ‘8-bit’, posts on GPUs, TPUs, and more.
To get the most of 2024 at a bargain price then take please advantage of ….
Annual Subscription Special Offer
In definitely the last offer of the year, get a 20% discount on new annual subscriptions taken out between now and January 5th.
Please remember that this ‘locks in’ a discount for future years too!
Thank you for the mention, Babbage. I am also thankful for your recommendation.
Also, looking forward to your posts in 2024, the slate looks enticing!
Appreciate the shout-out! It’s been a delight reading the Chip Letter this year. Looking forward to 2024!