Fremont, CA, October 16, 2001 - Asyst Technologies, Inc. (Nasdaq NM: ASYT) today announced it has won a favorable ruling in a patent-infringement suit. On October 10, 2001, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit reversed an earlier district court ruling, allowing Asyst to proceed with its claims that the IridNet System and other related products made, used, sold and installed by Emtrak, Inc., Jenoptik AG, Jenoptik Infab, Inc., Jenoptik GmbH, Infab U.S. Operations, Inc., and Meissner & Wurst infringe upon certain Asyst U.S. patents.

In 1996, Asyst brought a suit claiming that the IridNet System and other related products infringed certain Asyst patents, which describe specific aspects of Asyst's automation, isolation, transport and communication systems used in processing semiconductor wafers into integrated circuits. The district court dismissed the lawsuit in June 2000. In reversing that decision, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit has remanded the case back to the U.S. District Court, Northern District of California, in San Jose.

Stated Geoffrey Ribar, Asyst senior vice president and chief financial officer, "We're pleased with the decision of the Federal Circuit Court. Asyst pursued this appeal as a normal course of action. It is imperative for the company to vigorously protect its intellectual property, and we intend to maintain this policy as we move forward-particularly to protect our market share in auto-ID technology."

Except for statements of historical fact, the statements in this press release are forward-looking. Such statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from the statements made. These factors include, but are not limited to, general economic conditions, semiconductor industry cycles, risks associated with the acceptance of new products and product capabilities and other factors more fully detailed in the Company's recent 10Q quarterly report on file with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

About Asyst
Asyst Technologies, Inc. is a leading provider of integrated automation systems for the semiconductor manufacturing industry, which enable semiconductor manufacturers to increase their manufacturing productivity and protect their investment in silicon wafers during the manufacture of integrated circuits, or ICs. Through its "Value-Assured Fab" strategy, Asyst offers a broad range of 200mm and 300mm solutions that enable the safe transfer of wafers and information between the process equipment and the fab line throughout the IC fabrication process, while reducing IC damage caused by human, environmental, mechanical and chemical factors. Encompassing isolation systems, work-in-process materials management, substrate-handling robotics, automated transport and loading systems, and connectivity automation software, Asyst's modular, interoperable solutions allow chipmakers and original equipment manufacturers, or OEMs, to select and employ the value-assured, hands-off manufacturing capabilities that best suit their needs.