But what should she do next?
According to her plan, she was supposed to move into the electronics industry. Catherine had even organized a group of skilled workers to research the most critical component of all: the CPU.
However, this plan had not progressed very far yet. Although Catherine understood the structure of a CPU, miniaturization proved to be difficult. Fortunately, Catherine knew a great deal about the subject.
Manufacturing a CPU was not actually that difficult, even in that era.
Of course, in terms of craftsmanship, it couldn't be compared to later standards.
But even the simplest CPU was not especially hard to build.
In the future, many American computer enthusiasts would build their own CPUs; although crude, they worked reasonably well.
The most difficult part was miniaturization.
Once that problem was solved, Catherine's GameTV could launch a standalone console version.
Catherine placed an order for a batch of miniature transistors from Fairchild Semiconductor and then had technicians study and assemble them. In the end, they produced the first CPU she wanted, and by then it was already mid-November.
This was an extremely rudimentary CPU, composed of 2,250 transistors, but it looked fairly decent.
Without a doubt, it was the world's first miniaturized CPU.
This CPU could process 4-bit data, perform 60,000 operations per second, had a clock speed of 0.74 MHz, and operated at a frequency of 108 kHz.
In fact, its specifications were almost identical to those of the very first CPU in history. The only real difference was probably its appearance.
In reality, this CPU was about the size of two decks of playing cards laid flat.
It had to be said that Moore's Law had its merits—though Moore himself was still at Fairchild Semiconductor and had not yet proposed this concept.
From the beginning, Catherine cared a great deal about aesthetics, and after coming to this world, she became even more of a perfectionist.
A CPU could become a modern, stylish accessory.
Although Catherine might say that a CPU striving to be fashionable sounded a bit odd, she was really just trying to make it look more futuristic; an attractive appearance was essential.
Since Bruce had taken over her original business plan, Catherine improvised another one.
And the name of this company was Intel.
In fact, Intel and Apple complemented each other perfectly.
Catherine wanted to separate GameTV's gaming functionality, and Intel could provide strong support for her future company, Apple.
With a CPU in hand, the market would be completely open to her.
At least in Catherine's view, IBM was far easier to deal with than arms dealers.
By the way, Catherine also restructured her company.
Ark Group became the core of Catherine's business, and to make this happen, she acquired a small bank that was on the verge of bankruptcy.
At the time, small banks were struggling, marking a turning point for the American banking industry.
Due to antitrust laws, competing companies could not acquire these banks, leaving bankruptcy as their only option. When the original shareholders learned that Catherine was acquiring the bank, they practically gave it away.
After liquidating all of its business, the main structure of Catherine's company was finally complete.
Catherine preferred to prepare everything in advance so that things would fall into place naturally, saving a great deal of time by avoiding constant reorganizations and restructurings.
Ark Group consisted of several wholly owned subsidiaries.
The newly established Intel focused on semiconductors—more specifically, various types of computer hardware.
Then there was Apple. Catherine positioned Apple as an entertainment and fashion company. Its main businesses were televisions, video game consoles, and computers. GameTV was Apple's first product.
Next came Blizzard Entertainment, originally the toy company behind Hogwarts Magical Factory, now a division specializing in the Wargame series. However, Catherine repositioned it as a game company—not only producing tabletop games, but also developing video games. She even entrusted it with the development of arcade versions of GameTV.
Although Catherine's naming strategy might lack technical sophistication, it reflected her expectations for the company.
The company's total assets were currently around ten million dollars. The vast majority of its profits came from Hogwarts Magical Factory under Blizzard Entertainment. However, those profits had plateaued and could no longer generate additional wealth for Catherine, so she needed to look elsewhere.
The micro-CPU patent belonged to Catherine, and with it, the personal computer was only months away.
Although it was called a micro-CPU patent, it actually consisted of 48 separate patents, along with additional patents related to integrated circuits.
Though collectively referred to as integrated circuits, Catherine owned a total of 75 patents in this field, all classified under integrated circuits. These patents effectively blocked the patent paths of Texas Instruments and Fairchild Semiconductor.
As a result, Catherine increased her investment in Intel, hoping to make it in time for the Seattle World's Fair in April of the following year.
Unlike other industries, Catherine did not value monopolies in electronics, because monopolies only hinder the growth of the industry and could even delay the arrival of personal computers.
Moreover, in the computing field, monopolies and closed systems are fundamentally flawed.
Apple declined in the 1980s precisely because of its closed standards, until Steve Jobs returned and saved the company from collapse.
Therefore, what Catherine wanted was to establish a standard—a standard for computers.
With a standard in place, any company could only manufacture products according to her specifications. That was exactly what Catherine wanted.
There is a saying: "Third-rate companies make products, second-rate companies build brands, and first-rate companies set standards."
Catherine wanted Intel to become a first-rate company.