MediaTek Inc (聯發科), the world’s second-largest handset chip designer, yesterday declined to comment on a report that China’s second-largest smartphone maker, Oppo Mobile Telecommunications Corp (歐珀), is poaching its highest-ranking executive in charge of 5G chip development.
The company said that it had its employees sign agreements on labor ethics.
Most Taiwanese tech companies impose “revolving door” restrictions on employees, preventing them from leaving for competitors.
MediaTek shares yesterday climbed 0.98 percent to close at NT$464.5, compared with the TAIEX climbing 0.16 percent. Turnover jumped 22 percent to 8.15 million shares, compared with 6.68 million shares on Tuesday.
Investors did not flinch when the Nikkei Asian Review reported that Oppo is ramping up its talent hunt after earlier hiring several professionals from its key chip suppliers, MediaTek and UNISOC Communications Inc (紫光展銳), to build an in-house chip development team and reduce reliance on US chipmakers.
Oppo has hired Jeffery Ju (朱尚組), MediaTek’s former cochief operating officer, as a consultant, while another MediaTek executive formerly involved in the development of the firm’s 5G smartphone chip is to join Oppo as soon next month, Nikkei said.
Ju left MediaTek in 2017.
Nikkei did not reveal the name of the MediaTek executive.
MediaTek said that it has over the past few years invested more than NT$100 billion (US$3.33 billion) in developing 5G chips and built a team of 3,000 engineers.
Oppo is the first smartphone maker adopting MediaTek’s first 5G system-on-chip (SoC), the Dimensity 1000, combined with Qualcomm Inc’s 5G chip for Oppo’s Reno 3 series.
MediaTek’s general manager T.L. Lee (李宗霖), who heads its 5G team, was targeted by Oppo in talent poaching efforts, the Chinese-language Economic Daily News reported in February.
Lee, who has worked at MediaTek for 18 years, was the architect behind its business model that focuses on offering chip reference design to its Chinese clients, allowing them to accelerate time to market.
In December last year, Lee joined chief financial officer David Ku (顧大為) at the unveiling of the company’s roadmap for developing its second 5G SoC, the Dimensity 800, for mid to high-range smartphones, which is scheduled to be presented this quarter.
MediaTek also plans to launch its first 5G chips that would support millimeter-wave technology by the end of this year, Lee said at the ceremony.
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