Correct: A. 1998

Google was founded in 1998 by Larry Page and Sergey Brin while they were Ph.D. students at Stanford University. They originally named their search engine "BackRub" before changing it to Google.

Correct: A. IBM

IBM released the Simon Personal Communicator in 1994, which is widely considered the world's first smartphone. It featured a touchscreen, email, a calendar, and even a "sketchpad" for taking notes with a stylus.

Correct: C. Android Inc.

Android Inc. was the original company that developed the Android OS before Google acquired them in 2005. The company was founded by Andy Rubin, Rich Miner, Nick Sears, and Chris White.

Correct: A. Morris Chang

Morris Chang founded TSMC with the revolutionary idea of only manufacturing chips designed by other companies rather than designing its own. Today, TSMC is the world's most valuable semiconductor company and produces nearly all of the world's most advanced 3nm and 5nm chips. This 'pure-play' foundry model allowed companies like Apple, NVIDIA, and AMD to thrive by offloading the complex manufacturing process.

Correct: A. ASML

ASML (Advanced Semiconductor Materials Lithography) is arguably the most critical company in the global tech supply chain. Its EUV machines use light with a very short wavelength to etch microscopic patterns onto silicon wafers, allowing for the creation of 3nm chips. Without ASML's technology, the progress of AI and modern smartphone processors would effectively stall.

Correct: A. Dario Amodei

Dario Amodei, along with his sister Daniela, left OpenAI in 2021 due to concerns over the company's direction and focus on safety. Anthropic's flagship AI model, Claude, is designed using a technique called 'Constitutional AI' to ensure it remains helpful and harmless. The company has received multi-billion dollar investments from both Amazon and Google.

Correct: C. NVIDIA

NVIDIA's name is a play on the Latin word 'invidia,' which means envy; the founders also used the letters 'NV' to stand for 'Next Version' before choosing the final name. The company's logo, a green eye, is a direct reference to the 'green-eyed monster' of envy. This branding was intended to reflect the company's goal of creating technology that others would be envious of.

Correct: B. Samsung Sanghoe

Samsung Sanghoe originally started as a small trading company in Daegu, South Korea, dealing in groceries and dried-fish. Over the decades, it diversified into textiles, insurance, and eventually electronics, becoming the massive global 'chaebol' it is today. Samsung Electronics is now one of the world's largest manufacturers of semiconductors and smartphones.

Correct: B. Palantir Technologies

Palantir focuses on creating software that helps human analysts interact with massive, complex datasets. Its platforms, Gotham and Foundry, are used by government intelligence agencies and large corporations for everything from counter-terrorism to supply chain management. The company is known for its secretive nature and its unconventional CEO, Alex Karp.

Correct: C. Bitso

Bitso has become a critical piece of financial infrastructure in countries like Mexico, Brazil, and Argentina, where people use it for remittances and as a hedge against inflation. The company focuses on making crypto easy to use for everyday payments rather than just speculation. In 2021, Bitso became the first crypto 'unicorn' (a startup valued at over $1 billion) in Latin America.

Correct: A. Tekedra Mawakana and Dmitri Dolgov

Tekedra Mawakana and Dmitri Dolgov took over Waymo as co-CEOs in 2021 after John Krafcik left the CEO role. Waymo announced the leadership transition in April 2021.