The acquisition of NUVIA for $1.4 billion could have ended horribly for Qualcomm, but the San Diego firm can now find itself on almost an equal footing with Apple’s A-series and M-series of chipsets with the purchase. With the involvement of Gerard Williams III, who founded NUVIA, the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 with its third-generation Oryon cores became possible, and Qualcomm is just getting started.
The company is expected to introduce its first 2nm SoCs, the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 Pro and Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6, both of which will likely be the recipients of the fourth-generation custom CPU designs. Unfortunately, all journeys must come to an end, and for the ex-Apple employee, this is his farewell moment as he departs from Qualcomm after four years.
Gerard Williams III also holds several accolades working for Apple, as he was the lead architect for every custom chipset from the A17 to the A12X
The former Qualcomm employee hasn’t provided extensive details about his departure from the firm, other than a LinkedIn post saying he wants to spend more time on recreation and checking off items on his list that he may not have been able to complete due to his grueling career at various technology giants. The post states:
“I want to let everyone know I am now enjoying quality time with family. My journey with Qualcomm has ended. I want to say thanks to all for the last four years together. Now the next chapter begins. And it’s starting with painting my house and doing that very long list of things I have made. Thank you to all the amazing friends and colleagues from NUVIA who made the journey possible. Stay humble. Stay strong. And always always be hungry.”
Whether or not Qualcomm will face difficulties in developing custom CPU designs after the departure of Gerard Williams III is unconfirmed, but it is likely that he hired and trained several resources who could take his place after his resignation. For those who don’t know, before being employed at Apple and Qualcomm, Gerard Williams III spent 12 years at ARM and was a key figure in developing several architectures, such as the Cortex-A8 and Cortex-A15.
He is also an inventor of over 60 Apple patents regarding power management and multi-core technology. With Qualcomm’s acquisition of NUVIA, Gerard Williams III probably received hefty compensation, meaning that he could have retired at that instant and would never have to worry about money problems. It is possible that his career was at a crossroads, and he decided to finally throw in the towel.
News Source: LinkedIn
About the author: Omar Sohail is a reporter and analyst for Wccftech's mobile section, specializing in the technology and business of the mobile industry. His expertise lies in the intricate hardware supply chain, covering developments in semiconductor manufacturing, chip lithography, and camera sensor technology.
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