14 DAY TRIAL // An announcement from eASIC Corporation confirming a new addition to its board of directors, along with a press release by Fusion-io, concomitantly confirm the departure of a Dr. Edward H. Frank from Apple’s Macintosh division.
Dr. Frank, 56, now sits on both companies’ boards of directors and has broken off ties with Apple for at least a month, going by the announcements. The move, however, has escaped the eyes of the media.
Before serving as vice president of Macintosh Hardware Systems Engineering at Apple Inc., Dr. Frank was also the vice president of research and development at Broadcom, an American company making wireless chips (modems) used in many Apple devices.
He has over 50 patents attributed to his name, and is a Life Trustee of Carnegie Mellon University.
The chip expert is likely to have left Apple not because of disagreements with the company’s management, but to retire. Technology experts like Dr. Frank usually undergo this transition by joining other tech companies’ boards of directors.
Fusion-io also has Steve Wozniak, co-founder of Apple and creator of the first personal computers, as a chief advisor.
Perhaps it is also worth noting that eASIC is a fabless semiconductor company which offers Single Mask Adaptable ASIC tools with a focus on “reducing the overall cost and time-to-production of customized semiconductor devices.”
“Low-cost, high-performance and fast-turn ASIC and System-on-Chip designs are enabled through patented technology utilizing Via-layer customizable routing,” according to the company’s “about” page.
Apple employs some of the most advanced SoC designs in its iPhones and iPads, and it wouldn’t be unheard of for the Cupertino giant to buy eASIC one day. For all we know, Dr. Frank departure could be a strategic one.
Commenting on their new addition to the Ronnie Vasishta, president and CEO of eASIC, said, “Ed’s strong and proven history of developing and bringing revolutionary solutions to market makes him an excellent addition to our board of directors.”
“His expertise in delivering innovative silicon and systems, at companies both large and small, will be invaluable as we continue to provide unique silicon customizations solution to our system customers,” added Vasishta.