Silicon Valley Tech Entrepreneur Reveals Who’s Behind His Success

Diosdado ‘Dado’ Banatao was standing in the podium surrounded by faculty and pupils of Malabbac Elementary School in Iguig, Cagayan.

Local officials, parent-teachers community association officers, members of the media and other visitors were also there. He is about to start his speech during the ceremonial ground-breaking and Memorandum of Agreement Signing for the construction of six state-of-the art classrooms in his beloved alma mater when an old woman caught his attention.

The old woman was in her early 80’s, holding her cane, dressed elegantly, sitting in one corner listening to him. She was seated in front alongside with the other officials and VIP guests during the event.

‘Dado’ started to say some words while he awkwardly looked behind, and suddenly, paused for a while. In his message, he revealed that when he was a schoolboy, he had to hear litanies of advices from her teachers before. This drew laughters from the crowd but the mood later became serious when he began uttering words of tribute to his one of his teachers before.

“Thanks to one teacher, who never failed to give words of wisdom, I just saw her there,” he said in a soft voice that he can’t almost pronounced the words as he tried to compose himself. While everyone was attentively listening to him, he stopped. He went down from the podium and walked slowly to where the 82-year old woman is seated.

Diosdado Banatao together with Ma’am Aching (1st from right). (PIA 2 photo)

It was a picture perfect moment. Dado held the old woman’s hands and wrapped his hands around the old woman’s waist. And in loud and brittle voice, Ma’am Aching, as she is fondly called, started to cry out loud.

“Thank you Dado, thank you for recognizing me, thank you. I am very grateful of your achievements,” Ma’am Aching uttered as they held each other’s hands. There was silence for a couple of seconds and everybody in the crowd can’t contain emotions but to cry.

Who is Ma’am Aching?

Ma’am Aching was Dado’s teacher at Malabac Elementary School who happened to be his aunt.

Just like any other teachers, Ma’am Aching encouraged Dado to strive to be the best he can be. She inspired him through her own knowledge and expertise.

Ma’am Aching was known then as one of the “terror teachers” but she said, she didn’t mind it of, as long as she inculcated righteousness in the minds of her students and fellow teachers.

She devoted her life to teaching because it is her passion. Still single now, she said teaching is her life and “forever”.

She added that nothing can be compared to the happines she felt when recognized by an international icon in the field of information technology. She said, she couldn’t be prouder to be Dado’s teacher more than six decades ago. After all, for a retired teacher and principal like Ma’am Aching, the success of their former pupils is their success too.

Dado shared Ma’am Aching and his other teachers played big role in his success. He recalled how Jesuit way of quality education paved his way to success after he graduated at then Ateneo de Tuguegarao, now the University of St. Louis Tuguegarao.

He values his education as much as his foundation, the Salvador – Rosita Banatao Foundation, that recently in partnered with PhilAM Foundation, Inc. and donated P4 million and P2 million, respectively, for the construction of six state-of-the-art classrooms at his alma mater.

Dado’s achievements

Dado’s life journey is an inspirational rags-to-riches success story of breaking free from poverty through education and hard work. He is the son of a rice farmer and a housekeeper from a small village in Cagayan. In his early childhood, he had no access to electricity and walked barefoot to his elementary school.

He is now based in Silicon Valley, an award-winning technology entrepreneur, an enterprise builder and a Forbes Asia “Hero of Philanthropy.

When the world’s most powerful mainframe computer was the IBM 360, Banatao’s innovative new chip-set design produced 10 times more power at a thousandth of the cost. His other technological innovations include: developing the first single-chip; the 16-bit microprocessor-based calculator while working for Commodore International in ‘76; the first single-chip MicroVAX while working for Digital Equipment; the first 10-Mbit Ethernet CMOS with silicon coupler data-link control and trans-receiver chip; getting 3Com into the Ethernet PC add-in card business while at Seeq Technology in early ‘80s; the first system logic chip set for the PC-XT and the PC-AT while at Mostron in ‘84 and Chips & Technologies in ‘85); the first enhanced graphics adapter chip set while at Chips & Technologies in ‘85); pioneering local bus concept for PC while at S3 in 1989, and the first Windows accelerator chip while at S3 in ‘90.

It is always good to be back in a place where one is born and schooled. For Dado, it wouldn’t be wrong to say that he is currently living his dreams. Having gone through the ups and downs before gaining successes, Dado never failed to show gestures of unending gratitude to his teachers before and give back to his alma mater, the Malabbac Elementary School, the place where all his dreams were planted. The next time you see Dado, thank him but thank his teachers also. After all, his success now is every Cagayano’s success. (MDCT/GVB/PIA 2-Cagayan)