Linksys

Lore & Background

Linksys was founded in 1988 as DEW International by spouses Victor and Janie Tsao in the garage of their Irvine, California home. The Tsao family, immigrants from Taiwan, initially held second jobs as consultants pairing American technology vendors with Taiwanese manufacturers. The company's first products were printer sharers that connected multiple PCs to printers, later expanding into Ethernet hubs, network cards, and cords. By 1994, Linksys had 55 employees and annual revenues of $6.5 million.

A major boost came in 1995 when Microsoft released Windows 95 with built-in networking functions, expanding the market for Linksys products. The company established its first U.S. retail channels with Fry's Electronics in 1995 and Best Buy in 1996. In the late 1990s, Linksys released the first affordable multiport router, popularizing the brand for home networking. By 2003, when Cisco acquired the company, it had 305 employees and revenues exceeding $500 million.

Under Cisco, Linksys expanded its product line, acquiring VoIP maker Sipura Technology in 2005 and home networking software vendor Pure Networks in 2008. Cisco sold the division to Belkin in 2013, giving Belkin 30% of the home router market. In 2018, Belkin and its subsidiaries, including Linksys, were acquired by Foxconn for $866 million. In 2021, cybersecurity firm Fortinet made investments totaling $160 million in Linksys, and on January 31, 2025, Fortinet acquired the remaining outstanding Series A Preferred Stock, making Linksys wholly owned by Fortinet.

Reader's Guide

Linksys holds a significant place in the history of home networking as the company that popularized affordable multiport routers, making home networking accessible to a broad consumer market. Its WRT54G router became iconic for its Linux-based firmware, which later spurred a community of third-party firmware projects. The company's evolution from a garage startup to a global brand reflects the growth of the home networking industry itself. Under successive owners—Cisco, Belkin, Foxconn, and ultimately Fortinet—Linksys has continued to innovate, introducing mesh Wi-Fi systems like Velop, Wi-Fi 6E routers, and home monitoring features such as Linksys Aware. Its acquisition by Fortinet in 2025 underscores a shift toward integrating cybersecurity into home networking, exemplified by the HomeWRK product that separates personal and business traffic with Fortinet's security stack. Linksys products are sold in 64 countries through retail and online channels, and the company was the first router manufacturer to ship 100 million products, cementing its legacy as a foundational brand in consumer networking.

Did You Know?

• Linksys was founded in 1988 as DEW International in the garage of the founders' Irvine, California home.
• The WRT54G router was notable for using Linux-based firmware, which later inspired third-party firmware projects.
• As of January 31, 2025, Linksys is wholly owned by cybersecurity firm Fortinet.