EXHIBIT 99.1


 ASYST TECHNOLOGIES, INC. COMMENTS ON IMPROVED EXPECTATIONS FOR THIRD QUARTER
                      FISCAL YEAR 2000 FINANCIAL RESULTS

       Company Announces Two-For-One Stock Split And Executive Additions

Fremont, CA, January 3, 2000 - Asyst Technologies, Inc. (Nasdaq NM: ASYT)
announced today that the company anticipates that its financial results for the
third quarter ending December 31, 1999 will be above current street estimates.
The company also announced that its Board of Directors has declared a 2-for-1
stock split.

"Customer demand for our products reached new highs during the quarter,"
commented Doug McCutcheon, senior vice president and chief financial officer of
Asyst. "Based upon our preliminary numbers, we now expect to report revenues for
the December quarter of approximately $62 million, which is well above the
current consensus street estimate of $53 million. We also expect that when the
final numbers are available, we will report net income in excess of the
currently published street expectations of $4 million." McCutcheon concluded,
"The company has experienced increasing strength in new order flow based on
rising demand for Asyst factory automation solutions, which positions us well
for the upcoming fourth quarter."

Asyst plans on reporting actual results for the third quarter on January 19,
2000 after the close of market.

"These results are testament to the dedication, support and commitment of the
entire Asyst organization, and we are gratified to see such high demand for our
factory automation solutions on a global level," commented Dr. Mihir Parikh,
chairman and chief executive officer. "This surge in business, however,
underlines the need for us to quickly strengthen our operations management team.
We must offer our customers not only leading edge technologies and products, but
also an operations capability that provides assured execution. To this end, we
are pleased to be able to announce today two key additions to our management
team."

Thomas Waechter (47) has been appointed to the newly created position of Senior
Vice President of Global Business Operations. Mr. Waechter brings to Asyst
extensive experience in directing manufacturing and customer service operations,
having spent 15 years with Schlumberger, most recently as Vice President of
Global Operations for the automated Test Equipment division.

Daniel Loverro (47) has been appointed to the newly created position of Vice
President of Business Systems & Information Technology. With over 24 years of
experience with Hitachi-America, Andersen Consulting and PriceWaterhouseCoopers,
Mr. Loverro brings substantial management and consulting experience to the Asyst
team.

The company also announced that Terry Moshier will be stepping down as president
and chief operating officer. Mr. Moshier is expected to advise on transitional
matters as well as pending operational initiatives in the next few months. "We
would like to thank Terry for his contributions in bringing Asyst to this stage
in its development," noted Parikh. "Under the team that we are now assembling,
we will continue our drive toward world class manufacturing excellence."

The 2-for-1 stock split will be effected by the distribution of a 100 percent
stock dividend to shareholders of record January 7, 2000. Asyst's transfer agent
will deliver the new stock certificates representing the additional shares on or
about February 4, 2000. The company last split its stock in August of 1997. Upon
completion of the stock split, Asyst will have approximately 31 million shares
outstanding.

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 S-3 Registration Statement.

About Asyst

Asyst Technologies, Inc. is the leading provider of Standard Mechanical
Interface-based minienvironment and manufacturing automation systems that enable
semiconductor manufacturers to protect customers' valued assets throughout the
manufacturing process while increasing manufacturing productivity. Asyst offers
a broad range of 200 mm and 300 mm products that enable the Company to provide
semiconductor manufacturers and Original Equipment Manufacturers automated
manufacturing solutions for the transfer of wafers and information between the
process equipment and the fab line.