On this day in 1954 Texas Instruments Inc. announced the first commercial production of silicon transistors. These were developed by Gordon Teal, who previously worked on germanium transistors at Bell Labs. This commercial introduction greatly lowered the price of transistors and paved the way for the completion of many other electronic inventions. The transistor continues to be a key component in many modern devices today and is considered to be one of the greatest inventions of the 20th century.