The company was founded by Paul V. Galvin as the Galvin Manufacturing Corporation, in Chicago, Illinois, in 1928. Its first product was a "battery eliminator," allowing consumers to operate radios directly from household current instead of the batteries supplied with early models. In the 1930s, the company successfully commercialized car radios under the brand name "Motorola," a word suggesting sound in motion. During this period, the company also established home radio and police radio departments. The name of the company was changed to Motorola, Inc., in 1947.

The decade of the 1940s also saw the company begin government work and open a research laboratory in Phoenix, Arizona, to explore solid-state electronics. By the time of Paul Galvin's death in 1959, Motorola was a leader in military, space and commercial communications, had built its first semiconductor facility and was a growing manufacturer of consumer electronics. Under the leadership of Robert W. Galvin, Paul Galvin's son, Motorola expanded into international markets in the 1960s and began shifting its focus away from consumer electronics.

The color television receiver business was sold in the mid-1970s, allowing Motorola to concentrate its energies on high-technology markets in commercial, industrial and government fields. By the end of the 1980s, Motorola had become the premier worldwide supplier of cellular telephones.

Following the merger with General Instrument Corporation, Motorola became a leader in cable modems and set-top terminals. Today, Motorola is harnessing the power of wireless, broadband and the Internet to deliver embedded chip system level and end-to-end network communication solutions for the individual, work team, vehicle and home. Motorola’s CEO Christopher B. Galvin has announced his retirement in September 2003. The newly appointed CEO is MR. Edward J. Zander, who will be taking over both the positions as the Chairman of the Board and CEO in January 2004. It is highly expected that Mr. Zander will lead Motorola into yet another peak.