14 DAY TRIAL // It has been revealed that Atakan Peker, a co-inventor of the amorphous metal alloy thought to be used in the next iPhone, has been “off” Liquidmetal for years.
CBS News reveals to the world that Peker hasn’t worked at Liquidmetal since 2007, which means the man wasn’t around when Apple acquired exclusive rights to use the material.
In fact, “Peker didn't learn that Apple had used Liquidmetal in an iPhone (for the SIM card ejector pin) until he bought his iPhone 3G,” the report notes, adding that “the iPhone 3G was released in 2008, the year after Peker left Liquidmetal.”
Peker claimed Liquidmetal required complex technologies to be cast into big parts, such as the chassis for a new iPhone, and that these technologies haven’t matured yet. He may be wrong.
Apple also hadn’t licensed the metallic glass material until 2010, which means Peker had been “off” Liquidmetal for about three years when these crucial development occurred. All this, and more, can be found in the full report here.