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Former Apple, IBM exec names AMD CTO

by on20 October 2011



Mark Papermaster in the hot seat


Chipmaker AMD has named former Apple and IBM executive Mark Papermaster as its new chief technology officer. Papermaster will be in charge of developing AMD’s future products and he will report directly to recently appointed AMD CEO Rory Read.

Before joining Apple, Papermaster worked on CPU development at IBM. At Apple, he was in charge of iPhone development until the left Cupertino last year, reportedly over the iPhone 4 antennagate. He went on to Cisco, where he was also in charge of product development.

He takes over the post vacated by ATI veteran Rick Bergman, who apparently departed the company after he was passed over for the CEO job.

Papermaster is now in the unenviable position of taking charge of AMD’s hardware development and he will undoubtedly have a lot on his mind. AMD has been plagued by several costly product delays and it has faced a number of setbacks in recent quarters, like low 32nm Llano yields and the somewhat disappointing launch of FX-series chips to name but a few. The company also lost a significant share in the server market which was swallowed up by Intel, but it’s doing quite well in graphics and its low-end APUs have also proven successful.

AMD is currently in the process of transitioning to an entirely new architecture and completely overhauling its desktop and server lineups. Any significant delays in 2012 would be quite painful for the troubled chipmaker.

Last modified on 20 October 2011
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