The microprocessor turns 40 on Tuesday

Forty years ago, Intel unveiled the Intel 4004, the first commercially available microprocessor, which combined all the components of a processor onto a single chip for the very first time.

The existence of that first chip was disclosed in an advertisement published on 15 November 1971, and V3 will be publishing some special coverage on Tuesday to celebrate the 40th anniversary of this event.

Check back to V3.co.uk for a timeline of the most significant events in processor history, plus an in-depth article on the microprocessor and how we got from the 4-bit 4004 to today's 64-bit multi-core, multi-gigahertz processor leviathans.