TEXAS Instruments said yesterday that it has developed new technology that will allow it to build computer chips with processing power 20 times greater than today's state of the art personal computers.

The semiconductor maker said its new "Timeline" technology will allow the company to put a variety of computer functions, including memory, microprocessor and other special functions on a single chip, reducing the number of chips required for consumer electronic devices by up to 90 per cent.

It said the new technology allows it to build transistors as small as 0.18 microns, allowing it to put up to 125 million transistors on a single chip. A micron is a millionth of a meter.

Texas Instruments said computer chips based on the technology would lead to a new generation of products such as picture phones, computers that recognise human speech patterns, or automated teller machines that recognise a bank customer's face or fingerprint.

It said such chips will also increase the battery life of mobile electronic devices such as cellular phones or laptop computers.

The company said it expected to begin shipping the new chips in 1997.