Teradyne (NYSE: TER), based in North Reading, Massachusetts in the United States, is a developer and supplier of automatic test equipment (ATE). The company's divisions Semiconductor Test and Systems Test Group, are organized by the products they develop and deliver. Teradyne's high-profile customers include Samsung, Qualcomm, Intel, Analog Devices, Texas Instruments and IBM.

Teradyne was founded by Alex d’Arbeloff and Nick DeWolf, who were classmates at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the late 1940s. The men founded Teradyne in 1960, and set up shop in rented space above Joe and Nemo’s hotdog stand in downtown Boston. The name, Teradyne, was intended to represent a very forceful presence. 1,000,000,000,000 dynes = 10 meganewtons (2,248,089 pounds-force or 1,019,716 kilograms-force).

In 1961, they sold their first product, a diode tester, to Raytheon. Today, Teradyne operates major facilities in North Reading, Massachusetts; Agoura Hills, California; Tualatin, Oregon; Fridley, Minnesota, Buffalo Grove, Illinois, Seoul, Korea, Teradyne Philippines, Teradyne Costa Rica and other locations worldwide.

Upon d'Arbeloff's retirement, George Chamillard assumed the post of President and CEO. He was replaced at his retirement by former CFO Mike Bradley. Bradley retired in January 2014, and was in turn replaced by Semiconductor Test Division president Mark Jagiela.

In 2001, in an attempt to cut costs, Teradyne conducted layoffs within its workforce. This action was a response to the late 1990s tech boom collapse.

In 2006, Teradyne sold its two Boston buildings and consolidated all of its Boston-area staff to the North Reading site. Teradyne also sold off its TCS (Teradyne Connection System) in 2006 in order to gather cash and focus on its core business to compete with other growing competitors like Advantest, Verigy and Eagle Test Systems.

In 2006, Teradyne cut costs to gather cash and buy back some of its shares. In order to cut cost, Teradyne laid off a number of employees in the US and Europe and now tries to relocate its main business unit to Asia (Singapore) and to outsource some of its business units. These steps were meant to increase profitability.

In December 2007, Teradyne announced intent to purchase Nextest Systems at a price of U.S. $20.00 per share. This move was intended to allow the company to expand into the flash memory test market.

In September 2008, Teradyne announced intent to purchase Eagle Test Systems. This move was intended to allow the company to expand into the Analog test market. Teradyne completed the acquisition of Eagle Test Systems on November 14, 2008.

Teradyne has obtained over 2,000 patents worldwide primarily through its research & development divisions in Massachusetts and California, but sometimes through acquisitions of companies such as the aforementioned Eagle Test Systems and the more recent LitePoint.

Timeline showing notable milestones, major acquisitions and key innovations.

1960 - Teradyne founded in Boston, MA by Alex d'Arbeloff and Nick DeWolf.

1961 - First product, the D133 diode tester, sold by Raytheon Company.

1966 - Teradyne moves headquarters from the Summer street loft above Joe & Nemo's hot dog stand to 183 Essex Street, Boston.

1966 - Teradyne introduces the first computer controlled chip tester, the J259.

1969 - Teradyne launches Teradyne Dynamic Systems after acquiring Triangle Systems to develop digital semiconductor test systems in Chatsworth, CA.

1970 - Teradyne becomes a publicly owned company and is listed on the New York Stock Exchange (symbol TER), 420,000 shares are sold to the public.

1971 - Alex d'Arbeloff is named President of Teradyne.

1973 - Teradyne launches Teradyne Central in Chicago, IL to develop telecommunications test systems.

1973 - Teradyne introduces the world's first subscriber-line test system, 4TEL.

1979 - Teradyne passes $100 million in sales; A300 Analog LSI test system introduced.

1980 - Teradyne introduces the first combinational in-circuit/functional circuit board test system, the L200.

1981 - Teradyne announces the first VLSI test system with non-stop pattern generation, the J941.

1986 - Teradyne introduces the first analog VLSI test system, the A500.

1988 - Teradyne introduces the first PC-based circuit board tester to use spreadsheet programming, the Z1800-Series.

1990 - Teradyne launches company-wide Total Quality Management initiative.

1993 - Teradyne receives $63 million order from Deutsche Telekom for 4TEL telecommunications test systems, a record for the company.

1996 - Teradyne introduces the Spectrum 8800-Series Manufacturing Test Platform, the first VXI-based in-circuit tester.

1996 - Marlin Memory Test system introduced; the first system capable of simultaneous test and redundancy analysis of DRAMs.

1997 - Teradyne creates the J973, the first Structural to Functional test system with the ability to shift in real time.

1997 - Teradyne introduces Catalyst, the first System-On-A-Chip (SOC) test system.

1998 - Teradyne introduces the Integra J750, a test solution for high volume test of low-cost devices.

2000 - Teradyne Japan Division announces a new generation of image sensor test systems, the IP-750.

2004 - Teradyne introduces the FLEX family of test systems, providing test flexibility for high volume, high mix, complex SOC devices.

2006 - Teradyne moves headquarters to North Reading, MA.

2008 - Teradyne acquires Eagle Test and Nextest Systems.

2010 - Teradyne celebrates its 50th Anniversary.

2011 - Teradyne acquires LitePoint to advance test solutions for the development and manufacturing of wireless devices.

2015 - Teradyne acquires Danish company Universal Robots.

The Semiconductor Test Division manufactures test equipment used by integrated circuit manufacturers. As of 2006, Teradyne manufactures three principal families of testers known as the "J750", "FLEX" and "UltraFLEX". These testers are used by semiconductor manufacturers to test and classify the individual devices ("dies") on a completed semiconductor wafer and then used again to retest the parts once they are enclosed in their final packaging. UltraFLEX testers are capable of testing SOC (Mixed-signal, System on a chip) devices with more than 4000 pins and data rates extending beyond 10 GHz. Portions of this division were acquired when Teradyne purchased Megatest.

The Assembly Test Division builds testers that test completed circuit boards (Printed circuit boards/Printed Wiring Boards) and hard drives. Portions of this division were acquired when Teradyne purchased GenRad in 2002.

Vehicle Test Solutions, previously a division of GenRad based in Manchester in the United Kingdom, sells customized diagnostic equipment to automobile manufacturers worldwide. On 16 February 2011, Teradyne announced its intent to sell this division to SPX Corporation.

Teradyne Connection Systems, based in Nashua, New Hampshire manufactures high-density electronic connectors, complete backplanes, and systems packaging. On 10 October 2005, Teradyne announced that this division was being sold to Amphenol for about US$ 390 million in cash.