Cees Links (born in 1957 in Amsterdam, the Netherlands) is a Dutch entrepreneur and the founder and CEO of GreenPeak Technologies (2004), a

fabless Fabless manufacturing is the design and sale of hardware devices and semiconductor chips while outsourcing their fabrication (or ''fab'') to a specialized manufacturer called a semiconductor foundry. These foundries are typically, but not exclu ...

semiconductor A semiconductor is a material with electrical conductivity between that of a conductor and an insulator. Its conductivity can be modified by adding impurities (" doping") to its crystal structure. When two regions with different doping level ...

company for

Smart Home ''SMart'' was a British CBBC television programme based on art, which began in 1994 and ended in 2009. The programme was recorded at BBC Television Centre in London. Previously it had been recorded in Studio A at Pebble Mill Studios in Birming ...

and

Internet of things Internet of things (IoT) describes devices with sensors, processing ability, software and other technologies that connect and exchange data with other devices and systems over the Internet or other communication networks. The IoT encompasse ...

(IoT) applications, in 2016 sold to

Qorvo Qorvo, Inc. is an American multinational company specializing in products for wireless, wired, and power markets. The company was created by the merger of TriQuint Semiconductor and RF Micro Devices, which was announced in 2014 and completed ...

Inc., a USA-based semi-conductor/technology company.

Career

Upon graduation from the

University of Twente The University of Twente ( ; Abbreviation, abbr. ) is a Public university, public technical university located in Enschede, Netherlands. The university has been placed in the top 170 universities in the world by multiple central ranking tables. ...

in 1982, Links started his career at

NCR Corporation NCR Voyix Corporation, previously known as NCR Corporation and National Cash Register, is a global software, consulting and technology company providing several professional services and Electronics, electronic products. It manufactured Self-c ...

. As product manager, he would have worked on the first concept development and launch of the world's first wireless LAN product in 1990,

WaveLAN WaveLAN was a brand name for a family of wireless networking technology sold by NCR, AT&T, Lucent Technologies, and Agere Systems as well as being sold by other companies under OEM agreements. The WaveLAN name debuted on the market in 1990 and was ...

, a major innovation at that time. Throughout several acquisitions and divestitures (NCR, AT&T, Lucent Technologies and Agere Systems), Links continued his work in the wireless LAN area, which he turned into a multi-hundred million dollar business for Agere Systems. Links became general manager in 1996 of the business unit. He directly closed the deal with Steve Jobs at Apple Computer in 1999 that ignited the growth of the wireless LAN industry.

Awards

Links was recognized in January 2017 as Wi-Fi pioneer with the Golden Mousetrap Lifetime Achievement award. In May 2019, Links was inducted into Wi-Fi NOW Hall of Fame.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Links, Cees 1957 births Living people Engineers from Amsterdam Radio pioneers Businesspeople from Amsterdam Dutch corporate directors Dutch technology chief executives University of Twente