Valve Corporation, also known as Valve Software, is an American video game developer, publisher, and digital distribution company headquartered in Bellevue, Washington. Valve was founded in 1996 by former Microsoft employees Gabe Newell and Mike Harrington. Valve is known for developing popular video games such as Half-Life, Portal, and Left 4 Dead, as well as creating the digital distribution platform Steam.
In addition to video game development and digital distribution, Valve also hires people with expertise in various fields such as art, audio, software engineering, and technical infrastructure.
A valve is a device that regulates, directs, or controls the flow of a fluid (gases, liquids, fluidized solids, or slurries) by opening, closing, or partially obstructing various pathways. Valves are found in virtually every industrial process, including water and sewage processing, mining, power generation, processing of oil, gas and petroleum, food manufacturing, chemical and plastic manufacturing, and many other fields. Valves can be made of various materials and can have built-in electronics or other sensing devices that react to real-time conditions.
