Affymetrix, Inc. is an American company that manufactures
DNA microarrays; it is based in
Santa Clara, California, United States. The company was founded by Dr.
Stephen Fodor in 1992. It began as a unit in Affymax N.V. in 1991 by Fodor's group, which had in the late 1980s developed methods for fabricating DNA microarrays, called "GeneChip" according to the Affymetrix trademark, using
semiconductor manufacturing techniques. The company's first product, an
HIV genotyping GeneChip, was introduced in 1994 and the company
went public in 1996. As a result of its pioneering work and the ensuing popularity of microarray products, Affymetrix derives significant benefit from its
patent portfolio in this area.