CRUS

Cirrus Logic, Inc.

A fabless chip designer that makes the tiny audio converters and amplifiers inside smartphones, laptops, wearables, and smart speakers — it designs the chips and has them built elsewhere. Born in 1981 as Patil Systems in Utah, it was renamed Cirrus Logic in 1984; the name came from CEO Michael Hackworth's daughter, who suggested "cirrus" after the wispy high-altitude clouds. Its 1991 purchase of Crystal Semiconductor made audio its signature specialty.