= History =
After the release of the [[Intel 8080 ]] CPU, Intel began working on the iAPX 432 project. It was an ambitious 32‑bit design—aimed at supporting advanced, high‑level programming features in hardware—which took several years and a large team to develop, partly because it awaited further improvements in chip density per Moore’s Law.
Meanwhile, to quickly counter the competition, Intel rushed a simpler, lower‑risk design: the 8086. This chip, developed as an incremental evolution of the 8080 and managed by a separate team, was ready for mass market in 1978.