Chuck Peddle, the creator of the MOS Technology 6502 microprocessor has passed away at age 82. Peddle, originally on the Motorola team that developed the 6800 series chips, was determined to develop an inexpensive chip which did not cost $300 such as the Motorola 6809 did.
Originally developed while Peddle was working at Motorola, the 6502 was a major breakthrough in cost and allowed almost anyone to build a computer. Motorola told Peddle to shut down the project due to the fact that the chip was competing directly with the in-house chips. Peddle instead took the chip over to MOS Technology along with a number of other team members at Motorola.
The result of all of Chuck Peddle’s jump from the Motorola ship and his hard work was the 6502 microprocessor and the creation of an entire industry of personal computers. By 1984, the resulting chip could be found in all of the Apple Computer, Inc. machines as well as all Commodore machines.
