Estrin and Carrico are drawn to Wi-Fi because of its ties to Ethernet technology.

FORBES: Mr. and Mrs. Network

However, all innovative companies tend to be alike in certain ways, Ms. Estrin says.

WSJ: Better Ideas Through Failure

All of this, however, is not quite what Dr Estrin originally had in mind.

ECONOMIST: Hardware goes soft

The impressive Estrin had solid practical tips to share about innovation and leadership, particularly in tough times.

FORBES: From Palin To Olli-Pekka

Wi-Fi is based on the ubiquitous networking scheme called Ethernet, which Estrin, 46, worked on in the 1970s, when she met Carrico, who is now 51.

FORBES: Mr. and Mrs. Network

"The net income target is a threshold to determine tax deductibility and clearly impacts whether we award a bonus or not, " says compensation committee chair Judith Estrin.

FORBES: Incentivizing Michael Eisner

In two decades of building companies, Judith Estrin and William Carrico have seen such simple technologies as Ethernet and Internet Protocol spur billions in new market value.

FORBES: Mr. and Mrs. Network

While able to speed up the work of the processor, Estrin-style, the reconfigurable logic is primarily intended to do the work that would normally be done by external chips.

ECONOMIST: Hardware goes soft

The topic was innovation, and featured speakers such as John Kao, the consultant and author, and Judy Estrin, scientist, entrepreneur, former CTO of Cisco and current board member at Disney and FedEx.

FORBES: From Palin To Olli-Pekka

Rather, the collective ingenuity of people such as Andy Bechtolsheim (co-founder of Sun Microsystems and subsequently Granite Systems) and Judy Estrin (a serial entrepreneur in the packet-switching business) was crucial to drive the technology through the standards bodies.

ECONOMIST: CASE HISTORY: Out of the ether | The