"In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is king", according to a 2000-year old Greek proverb. Perhaps, but the two-eyed man will always have the competitive edge. Clarity of vision has always been a vital ingredient for success in the semiconductor industry but never more so than now, when SoC (System-on-Chip) technology is redefining the boundaries between market segments and between chip manufacturers and their customers.

As this is the first issue of Challenge in the third millennium, it is hardly surprising that the theme of vision runs through it but there is nothing contrived about this - every article in this issue is included because it is current and reflects where ST is now or where it is heading. Ever since its formation in 1987, ST has grown faster than the world market and increased both its position in the world rankings and its stature within the electronics community. A key factor in this success has been its track record in anticipating its customers' requirements and ensuring that it has the technologies, the products and the infrastructures to meet future needs.

This is particularly borne out by our interview with Dick Pieranunzi who heads up ST's Americas region. The semiconductor industry was born in the USA; any chip manufacturer that wants to succeed at the world level must succeed in America and 1999 was a very successful year for ST in the USA. Not only in terms of sales but also in the ground-breaking developments that took place there, including the customizable VLIW platform developed with Hewlett-Packard (page 7) and the SH-5 processor core developed with Hitachi.

And, talking of vision, it is a year since ST acquired Vision Group, the CMOS imaging specialists. Vision's team of world-class imaging experts has been fully integrated into ST's Imaging and Displays Division and the resulting synergy is enabling the development of many exciting new products, as our lead article illustrates.