# John Kibarian

> John Kibarian is the co-founder, President, and CEO of PDF Solutions (NASDAQ: PDFS), a Santa Clara-based semiconductor analytics company he has helmed for over 35 years. Armed with a Ph.D. in Computer Engineering from Carnegie Mellon, Kibarian started building yield-improvement algorithms while still a researcher at SEMATECH - then turned those algorithms into a company. Today PDF Solutions generates $219 million in annual revenue helping chipmakers, test facilities, and battery manufacturers squeeze more quality out of every wafer, with flagship products like the Exensio Analytics Platform and the Sapience Manufacturing Hub driving AI-powered collaboration across global semiconductor supply chains.

- **Role:** President, CEO, Director, and Co-Founder at PDF Solutions
- **Organizations:** PDF Solutions (NASDAQ: PDFS), Electronic System Design Alliance (ESDA) - Governing Council Member, Electronic Design Automation Consortium (EDAC) - Co-Chairman, IEEE - Fellow
- **Nationality:** American
- **Education:** Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering, Carnegie Mellon University, Master of Science in Electrical Engineering, Carnegie Mellon University, Ph.D. in Computer Engineering, Carnegie Mellon University
- **Known for:** IEEE Fellow - elevated for technical leadership and contributions to semiconductor manufacturing, Co-founded and grew PDF Solutions from startup to $219M annual revenue over 35 years, Led PDF Solutions' NASDAQ listing (ticker: PDFS)

## Career timeline

- **pre-1991** — Researcher at Carnegie Mellon University's SEMATECH Center for Rapid Yield Learning; developed algorithms for diagnosing process variations from electrical test data and for yield maximization
- **1991** — Co-founded PDF Solutions and became President
- **2000** — Appointed Chief Executive Officer of PDF Solutions (July)
- **2003** — Described PDF Solutions as 'creating a new segment' in the semiconductor business
- **2019** — Led development and launch of Exensio Analytics Platform
- **2025** — Acquired Cimetrix (smart manufacturing/factory connectivity) and secureWISE (secure connectivity platform); PDF Solutions reached record $219M full-year revenue, 22% YoY growth
- **2025** — Keynote speaker at SEMICON West CEO Summit on AI-driven semiconductor collaboration; keynoted Advanced Process Control and Smart Manufacturing Conference
- **2026** — Personally purchased 50,000 shares (~$1.13M) of PDF Solutions stock in February, demonstrating confidence in company direction

## Achievements

- IEEE Fellow - elevated for technical leadership and contributions to semiconductor manufacturing
- Co-founded and grew PDF Solutions from startup to $219M annual revenue over 35 years
- Led PDF Solutions' NASDAQ listing (ticker: PDFS)
- Pioneered process-design integration methodologies for semiconductor yield improvement
- Developed foundational yield-optimization algorithms at SEMATECH that underpin modern manufacturing intelligence
- Led acquisitions of Cimetrix and secureWISE in 2025 to expand AI-driven manufacturing collaboration platform
- Governing Council Member, Electronic System Design Alliance (ESDA)
- Co-Chairman, Electronic Design Automation Consortium (EDAC)
- Regular keynote speaker at SEMICON West, ITF World, and Advanced Process Control conferences
- Built Sapience Manufacturing Hub as an AI-driven industry collaboration platform

## Latest updates

- **2026-05** — PDF Solutions reported Q1 2026 financial results on May 7, 2026
- **2026-02** — PDF Solutions reported record 2025 full-year revenues of $219.0 million (22% YoY growth); Kibarian personally purchased $1.13M in company stock
- **2025-10** — Kibarian keynoted SEMICON West 2025 CEO Summit on 'Revolutionizing Semiconductor Collaboration: The Emergence of AI-Driven Industry Platforms'
- **2025-09** — Keynoted Advanced Process Control and Smart Manufacturing Conference with 'The Evolution of Semiconductor Collaboration'
- **2025-02** — Participated in ITF World 2025 panel on AI-driven digital transformation and sustainable semiconductor strategies

## Links

- Website: https://www.pdf.com/company/management-team/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-kibarian/
- YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ydBjC-ad5TQ

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/john-kibarian
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-05-16