motorola

Motorola, Inc. is an American multinational telecommunications and electronics company with a long history dating to 1928. It was founded in Chicago by Paul Galvin as Galvin Manufacturing Corporation; the company adopted the Motorola name for its radios and, in 1930, renamed itself Motorola, Inc. The name is commonly said to derive from a combination of “motor” and the suffix “ola,” used to evoke popular radio brands of the era.

Motorola grew as a leading producer of radio communications equipment, military communications technology, and consumer electronics. It pioneered work in semiconductors and the development of handheld mobile devices. The company helped spur early cellular communication and produced the 6800 and 68000 microprocessor families, among other advances.

Notable milestones include the 1983 introduction of the first commercially available handheld mobile phone, the DynaTAC (through its subsidiary). Motorola also contributed to the development of cellular networks such as AMPS and later mobile platforms, and it produced a range of consumer and business devices over decades.

Corporate changes in the 2000s transformed its structure. In 2004, Motorola spun off its semiconductor division as Freescale Semiconductor. In 2011 Motorola Mobility was formed and, after a sale process, Google acquired Mobility in 2012, followed by Lenovo's 2014 acquisition of Mobility. The remaining company, Motorola Solutions, Inc., focuses on enterprise and public-safety communications equipment.

Today, the Motorola brand is used by Lenovo for consumer mobile devices, including smartphones under the Moto and Razr lines. Motorola Solutions continues to operate independently, supplying radio communications systems and services to public and enterprise customers. The company maintains a legacy in telecommunications and embedded systems across several fields.