It looks more and more like AMD is looking to reduce its reliance on the ever-shrinking PC market, as the chip maker has rehired two engineers who previously worked for them before moving on to Apple and Qualcomm.
Reuters reports that former Qualcomm engineer Charles Matar, with expertise in low-power and embedded chip design, is to join AMD as vice president of System-on-Chip Development. Also back at AMD is Wayne Meretsky, an engineer who once worked as a technical lead for OS X at Apple, this time returning as vice president of software IP development.
While an AMD spokesperson confirmed the hiring of the two men, saying they will help the company move into new markets, no specific details of their areas of responsibility were forthcoming.
With the return of Matar and Meretsky in addition to the return of chip guru Jim Keller, who came back to the company last August as chief architect, it is clear AMD is looking to diversify its products, although the direction they are looking to take remains unclear.
Speculation in the industry says that both Sony and Microsoft will come to AMD for the processor for their next-generation gaming systems. Other possibilities see AMD going after the mobile market, positioning itself as a competitor to Nvidia and its Tegra mobile processor line.
What is clear is that AMD must find a way to wean itself from its reliance on the PC industry, as it trimmed 15% of its workforce in October, the second round of layoffs in less than a year.
