Flint native influential in tech industry
FLINT, Mich. — Flint, Michigan native William David Tarver got his first taste of electronics from his father who served in the Army Signal Corps during WWII.
When Tarver’s father returned home he began working at the post office because opportunities for African Americans in electronics were few. For Tarver’s father this was not enough as he also fixed radios and televisions for the community in the basement of their home. This is where Tarver got his first taste of the electronics bug.
Tarver participated in several of Flint’s science fairs and would later obtain his Masters Degree from the University of Michigan in Electrical Engineering. His dreams would far exceed the ordinary and later come true as he and two co–founders began Telecom Analysis Systems in his basement. This is where they tested performance of data modems.
Apple, Nokia, and Samsung would later become clients of TAS for testing the performance of cell phones. In 1995 they sold TAS to British company Spirent PLC for 30 million dollars. Tarver said he called this day, “Independence day!”
Tarver has done community service in New Jersey and locally with an organization Urban Entrepreneurship. He is currently teaching at the University of Michigan and has written a book called Proving Ground.
Tarver said he does none of these things for a salary but for his own interest.
