Publish with Us

Follow Penguin

Follow Penguinsters

Follow Penguin Swadesh

The Chip Age

The Chip Age

How Semiconductors Became the World's Most Powerful Resource

Rakesh Kumar
Select Preferred Format
Buying Options
Paperback / Hardback

Chips are everywhere—they drive the world’s economy and are at the centre of the struggle for global supremacy. If the nineteenth century was the age of the steam engine, the twenty-first century belongs to the chips. Chips have changed the way we live, driving innovation, the economy and increasingly, geopolitics and long-term global stability. They will be critical in determining the health of the planet.

So how did we come to live in The Chip Age? What does it mean for the future?

In this fascinating book, Rakesh Kumar explores the world of microchips and explains how they are central to today’s world. The Chip Age is a history of chips and explains how they work, what exactly they do, how and where they are made, who makes them, and the shape of the chip economy. It also looks to the future, examining what new technologies and geopolitical games may lie ahead.

Essential reading for anyone who wants to understand the forces that will shape the next era—and the hidden circuits powering it.

Imprint: India Penguin

Published: Sep/2026

ISBN: 9789377300722 (Paperback)

Length : 312 Pages

MRP : ₹599.00

The Chip Age

How Semiconductors Became the World's Most Powerful Resource

Rakesh Kumar

Chips are everywhere—they drive the world’s economy and are at the centre of the struggle for global supremacy. If the nineteenth century was the age of the steam engine, the twenty-first century belongs to the chips. Chips have changed the way we live, driving innovation, the economy and increasingly, geopolitics and long-term global stability. They will be critical in determining the health of the planet.

So how did we come to live in The Chip Age? What does it mean for the future?

In this fascinating book, Rakesh Kumar explores the world of microchips and explains how they are central to today’s world. The Chip Age is a history of chips and explains how they work, what exactly they do, how and where they are made, who makes them, and the shape of the chip economy. It also looks to the future, examining what new technologies and geopolitical games may lie ahead.

Essential reading for anyone who wants to understand the forces that will shape the next era—and the hidden circuits powering it.

Buying Options
Paperback / Hardback

Rakesh Kumar

Rakesh Kumar is a Professor and John Bardeen Faculty Scholar in the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. He is a renowned expert on chips who has received multiple awards in recognition of his influence on chip research and the chip industry. Some of the technologies he’s developed now power the chips in your phones, tablets, and computers. He has written extensively about chips for a general audience, most recently for Fortune. He has also commented on chip issues for The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, the BBC, and Fortune, among others. He has co-founded two chip companies and serves as an advisor for multiple other chip companies.

error: Content is protected !!