Tim Cook will receive the chip industry’s highest honor this November. The Semiconductor Industry Association said on Tuesday, Sept. 22, 2026, that it had picked Apple’s executive chair as the 2026 winner of the Robert N. Noyce Award, to be handed over at the SIA Awards Dinner on Nov. 19 in San Jose, California.
The association gives the award every year to a leader with outstanding contributions to the semiconductor business. It carries the name of Robert N. Noyce, who co-founded both Fairchild Semiconductor and Intel Corporation.
The association’s reasoning
Dr. Lisa Su, chair and chief executive of AMD and the 2026 chair of the SIA board, gave the case for Cook in the announcement. “Tim Cook has been a powerful advocate for U.S. semiconductor leadership and advanced manufacturing, driving extraordinary growth and strengthening the foundation for our industry’s future,” she said.
The SIA’s statement credits Cook, during his years as chief executive, with launching semiconductor-enabled devices that people around the world use daily. He became Apple’s executive chair in September 2026. He had run the company as CEO since 2011, and before that he was chief operating officer, responsible for worldwide sales and operations and for the end-to-end management of Apple’s supply chain.
His earlier career took him through Compaq and IBM. He holds an M.B.A. from Duke University, where he was a Fuqua Scholar, and a B.S. in Industrial Engineering from Auburn University.
Cook’s response
Cook gave the credit to Apple’s engineers. In the SIA’s release he said the award “is a testament to Apple’s extraordinary engineering teams, who have transformed what our users can achieve through the power and scalability of Apple silicon-from Mac to iPhone and across our product lineup.”
He also spoke about manufacturing at home. “We’re deeply committed to advancing semiconductor innovation right here in the U.S.,” Cook said, adding that he looks forward to joining partners and industry leaders at the dinner.
Questions about the dinner and sponsorship go to Sarah Ravi at the SIA.
