STMicroelectronics NV is a European multinational semiconductor contract manufacturing and design company. It is the largest of such companies in Europe. The company is incorporated in the Netherlands and headquartered in Plan-les-Ouates, Switzerland. Its shares are traded on Euronext Paris, the Borsa Italiana and the New York Stock Exchange. It manufactures a wide range of microelectronics, including the widely-used STM8 and STM32 microcontrollers. ST was founded in 1987 from the merger of two state-owned semiconductor corporations, Thomson Semiconducteurs of France and SGS Microelettronica of Italy, with the aim of creating a corporation that could effectively compete with international semiconductor manufacturers. From early on, the company's senior management sought out poorly-served niches in the global market, such as microcontrollers, application-specific integrated circuits and analogue chips, and pursued vertical integration of its manufacturing. Another key strategy of ST was its focus on strategic partnerships, such as with Nokia and Seagate Technology; it would form 31 separate strategic alliances within its first 14 years of operation. Wikipedia