News Release

SANTA CLARA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 25, 2000--Applied Materials, Inc. (Nasdaq:AMAT) today launched the national tour of Charitech(R), a community outreach project designed to revolutionize the way New Economy entrepreneurs and nonprofit organizations interact in communities across the United States.

The Charitech project targets high-tech centers across the nation to connect New Economy wealth -- not just money, but ideas, talents, passions, skills and Web-based ways of operating -- with local nonprofits, helping to make emerging high-tech communities better places to live and work.

Following a successful pilot program in Austin, TX earlier this month, Charitech programs will be held in number of emerging high-tech communities, including, Richmond, Va., on Oct. 25 and Portland, Ore., on Nov. 2, 2000. Future locations will be announced for spring 2001. Each Charitech location was selected based on its position as a center of the changing economy, where old business models are being improved or replaced by new technology and communities are facing the changes brought by a New Economy.

"The idea is simple: apply to the nonprofit world the same logic and principles that have revolutionized businesses and spawned the New Economy," said Tom Hayes, managing director of Global Corporate Affairs at Applied Materials. "At the same time, Charitech aims to provide the next generation of community leaders the tools they need to become civic entrepreneurs and digital activists."

Charitech programs bring together approximately 150 future business leaders and 150 nonprofit executives. In a morning "Apps Lab" session, executives explore how nonprofits can revolutionize the way they do business by emulating today's leading companies' business practices. The ultimate goal is to make themselves more attractive to potential New Economy supporters. In an afternoon "Rule Breakers" session, future business leaders explore innovative tools and methodologies to identify and work with nonprofits that promote civic entrepreneurism.

At the events in Richmond and Portland, a "Cyber Cafe" will allow participants to surf the Web for sites referenced during study sessions. Charitech will conclude these events with a private networking reception for all participants, featuring musician Lyle Lovett. Details on all Charitech events are available on the Web at www.charitech.org.

Partnering with Applied Materials on Charitech as national media sponsor is Fast Company, the leading magazine of the New Economy and one of the fastest-growing magazines in the world, reporting on a wide range of companies, from the Internet to no net. Fast Company's recent "Call to Action" urged New Economy leaders to dedicate more time and effort toward bridging the "digital divide" and meeting other community needs.

Applied Materials developed Charitech in 1992, with the ongoing goal to encourage partnerships and dialogue between the nonprofit and business arenas. In the last decade, the Charitech project, a fully funded Applied Materials community outreach program, has produced nonprofit "trade shows," provided corporate training and community relations certifications. Applied Materials was also the lead investor of the United Way's first Charitech Civic Venture Capital Fund. The Charitech project's Web site is www.charitech.org.

Applied Materials (Nasdaq:AMAT) is a leader of the Information Age and the world's largest supplier of products and services to the global semiconductor industry. Applied Materials' Web site is www.appliedmaterials.com.

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