Early Life and Education
Henry Samueli was born on September 20, 1954, in Buffalo, New York, to Polish-Jewish immigrants who survived the Holocaust. His family moved to Los Angeles during his childhood. Samueli attended UCLA, where he earned a B.S. (1975), M.S. (1976), and Ph.D. (1980), all in electrical engineering. He showed an early interest in electronics and excelled academically.
Rise to Success
Samueli co-founded Broadcom Corporation in 1991 with Henry Nicholas while still a professor at UCLA. The company was initially focused on developing chips for broadband communications. Broadcom went public in 1998 and under Samueli's leadership as CTO, it became a leader in the semiconductor industry. Broadcom's success has been driven by innovations in digital signal processing architectures, enabling widespread adoption of high-speed internet and mobile communications.
Key Business Strategies
Broadcom's strategy involved innovation in digital signal processing, and strategic acquisitions. Broadcom was known for an aggressive acquisition strategy in the early 2000s. In 2016, Broadcom Corporation was acquired by Avago Technologies and renamed Broadcom Limited. Broadcom Inc. continues to be a major player in the semiconductor and infrastructure software industries.
Philanthropy
Henry and Susan Samueli are dedicated philanthropists, contributing to various causes. They established the Samueli Foundation, focusing on education, health, and community services. They made significant donations to UCLA and UC Irvine, including the naming of engineering schools. They also support health initiatives, including the Susan Samueli Integrative Health Institute. In June 2019, UCLA announced a $100 million gift from the Samuelis to expand the engineering school.