# Rick Wallace

> Rick Wallace is president and chief executive officer of KLA, the semiconductor process-control equipment and services company. An electrical engineering graduate of the University of Michigan with a master’s degree from Santa Clara University, he joined KLA in 1988 and became CEO in January 2006. His career connects technical work, teaching, customer leadership and corporate management, with public stories about rejected job applications, a risky internal assignment and KLA’s expansion into Ann Arbor.

- **Role:** President & Chief Executive Officer at KLA
- **Organizations:** KLA, Marvell Technology, SEMI (former board member and chairman), Splunk (former director), Proofpoint (former director), NetApp (former director), Cypress Semiconductor (former employer), Ultratech Stepper (former employer), Procter & Gamble (former employer), Santa Clara University (former adjunct lecturer)
- **Education:** B.S.E., Electrical Engineering, University of Michigan, M.S., Engineering Management, Santa Clara University
- **Known for:** Led KLA as CEO since January 2006., Received the 2010 Distinguished Engineering Alumnus Award from Santa Clara University., Received the 2023 University of Michigan ECE Alumni Impact Award.

## Career timeline

- **1982** — Earned an electrical engineering degree from the University of Michigan.
- **Before 1988** — Worked at Procter & Gamble, Cypress Semiconductor and Ultratech Stepper.
- **1988** — Joined KLA Instruments as an applications engineer.
- **2000-2004** — Executive vice president of KLA-Tencor’s Wafer Inspection Group.
- **2004-2005** — Executive vice president of the Customer Group.
- **2005** — Named president and chief operating officer in July.
- **2006** — Became chief executive officer and a KLA board member effective January 1.
- **2008** — Began his continuing tenure as president in November.
- **2010** — Received Santa Clara University’s Distinguished Engineering Alumnus Award.
- **2021** — Participated in the opening of KLA’s $200 million second U.S. headquarters in Ann Arbor.
- **2023** — Received the University of Michigan ECE Alumni Impact Award and gave a November 10 campus lecture.
- **2024** — Joined Marvell’s board effective April 25.
- **2026** — Marked twenty years as KLA CEO; announced fiscal 2026 results in July.

## Achievements

- Led KLA as CEO since January 2006.
- Received the 2010 Distinguished Engineering Alumnus Award from Santa Clara University.
- Received the 2023 University of Michigan ECE Alumni Impact Award.
- Oversaw KLA during the establishment of its second U.S. headquarters in Ann Arbor.
- KLA reported fiscal 2026 revenue of $13.58 billion and GAAP net income of $4.83 billion during his tenure.

## Latest updates

- **2026-10** — KLA announced its fiscal 2027 first-quarter earnings date and webcast on October 1.
- **2026-07** — Wallace announced fiscal 2026 results, with revenue of $13.58 billion and GAAP net income of $4.83 billion, and discussed AI-related process-control demand.
- **2024-04** — Joined Marvell’s board of directors effective April 25.

## Links

- Website: https://www.kla.com/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rickpwallace

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/rick-wallace
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-10-21