Stanford University Professor Edward J. McCluskey, and Jim Hogan, executive, angel investor, and board member has been honored as the first posthumous honorees of a new honor acknowledging their remarkable and notable contributions to the electronic system design industry.
The Kaufman Hall of Fame, co-sponsored by the Electronic System Design (ESD) Alliance and the IEEE Council on Electronic Design Automation (CEDA), posthumously acknowledges Jim Hogan and Professor McCluskey, neither of whom can be honored with the Phil Kaufman Award. Deceased members of the community are not able to receive the award, a policy set by the IEEE.
“Ed died in 2016 and, more recently, Jim, leaving giant and immutable legacies to the electronic system design industry,” comments Bob Smith, executive director of the ESD Alliance. “Both had outsized personalities and accomplishments to match.”
“While Ed will be remembered for his collection of unusual hats, he was a Computer Engineering pioneer who shaped the design and testing of digital systems for more than 50 years,” states Professor Yao-Weng Chang, president of CEDA. Dr. Chang is also the dean of the College of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at National Taiwan University.
“Jim was responsible for launching and/or guiding countless EDA and semiconductor startups and well understood the importance of fueling the semiconductor ecosystem with new and disruptive ideas,” adds Smith.
Jim Hogan
Jim Hogan, who left the world in February, was managing partner of Vista Ventures, LLC., and an experienced senior executive who served in the semiconductor design and manufacturing industry for more than 40 years. He served on various boards of directors for private electronic design automation, intellectual property, semiconductor equipment, material science, and IT companies and acted as a strategic advisor for private and public companies.
Professor Edward J. McCluskey
As per his nomination form, supported by six Phil Kaufman Award winners, Ed McCluskey (at right) sustained a relentless pace of significant contributions for efficient and robust design, high-quality testing, and reliable operation of digital systems.
His work has withstood the test of time across technology generations. “Ed’s technical contribution to the fundamentals of synthesis, test, fault tolerance, and digital design automation has been a cornerstone in the foundation of today’s world of ubiquitous computing and internet connectivity,” observes Dr. Thomas W. Williams, retired Synopsys fellow. Dr. Williams received the Phil Kaufman Award in 2018.
