CPU collector and enthusiast CPU Duke was given the opportunity to "pop the hood" off Intel's first-ever multi-purpose microprocessor, the 4004. In a post on X, the CPU collector removed the top portion of a 4004 processor, exposing its insides for them to explore with a microscope.
It doesn't take much zooming in to see the 10,000nm chip in all of its glory. In multiple X posts, CPU Duke showed off the 4004's internal wiring and the polysilicon structures beneath the chip's metal layer. CPU Duke even claimed he could individually count all 2,300 transistors on the chip in one such post.
The #Intel 4004 - the first single-chip microprocessor!Yes, I did it again, an old historic chip is decapped…but for a good cause! Thanks to the kind donation by the #Entertechnikwelt Computer Museum in Solothurn, Switzerland, I gave microscope this jewel.(2/n) https://t.co/0Qts8jKePu pic.twitter.com/ek4LgslyNrOctober 24, 2025
The Intel 4004 is a 4-bit processor featuring a clock speed of 740kHz, and a whopping 15V operating voltage (by contrast, modern processors operate in the 1.0V to 1.4V range). The maximum amount of memory the chip was able to address was a mere 4kB. The chip's clock speed doesn't paint how truly slow this chip is compared to modern chips, but for perspective, the 4004 can run 92,000 instructions per second. Rather than the billions of instructions per second, modern chips are capable of crunching.
The 4004 is considered the first modern microchip processor, being the first ever processor capable of being reprogrammed by software. Ironically, the 4004's design was first conceptualized for a calculator. In 1971, Intel was asked to create a twelve-chip set to build a desktop calculator for Busicom. But one of Intel's engineers, Ted Hoff, realized the concept would not work. Instead, he proposed a much simpler four-chip solution that could be programmed. This was the inception of the Intel 4004.
This was a radical change for Intel; before the 4004, chips could only be designed for specific functions. All the logic programming that those chips used was baked into their architecture. Programming revolutionized the computing industry, enabling microchip processors to perform different tasks without changing the hardware.
Ironically, Busicom was not happy with the Intel 4004 in its calculators. Due to a drop in market demand for desktop calculators at the time, Busicom wanted to renegotiate an inevitably cheaper price for the 4004. (It's also worth mentioning that Busicom owned the rights to the 4004 at this time.)
It’s the world’s first #CPU!Wow, seeing this historic chip first time with my own eyes is an unforgettable experience. Decapping went flawlessly, no bond wires damaged.And here it is X, the top metal layer of the 4004, Intel 1971, how cool is that!!! https://t.co/0Qts8jKePu pic.twitter.com/0bKfGCcEb0October 24, 2025
However, knowing the incredible potential of 4004, was capable of, Intel CEO Robert Noyce repurchased the rights of the 4004 at the urgent request of its design team. This would change the course of Intel forever, turning it into the giant multi-billion-dollar chip maker it is today.
The 4004 would lay the foundation for the modern computing industry today. All modern processors use the 4004's same core concept, of being able to run various commands through programming. Taking this concept to the extreme, someone went so far as to boot Linux on the Intel 4004. It took over four days to boot, but it worked!
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