Radeon marketing boss Chris Hook leaves AMD

AMD is losing key staff left, right and center, but one of the best guys in the industry is now gone from Team Red: Chris Hook. Hook joins major talent like Raja Koduri that have abandoned the what seems to be sinking ship that is Radeon.

Hook took to his Facebook page to announce the news, but had briefed some of the press before hand. I have been in contact with Chris for years now, he is a good friend of mine and it is sad to see him depart AMD, but I believe he will be landing on his feet very soon with some exciting news to share.

On his FB post, Hook said:

Hi Everyone, As some of you know, I made the decision recently to leave AMD to pursue a new role outside the company (which I start at the end of April). AMD has been a great company to work for, and I owe a tremendous amount to them both professionally and personally. Changing jobs was an incredibly hard decision to make since I've been with AMD/ATI since I was still in my late 20s, which is so long ago that ATI still had a smoking room, there was only one TV in the office (a small 14" black and white version we crowded into a room to watch 9/11 on), transistor size was still measured in microns, and 320Ã-240 was considered 'high res'.

The most rewarding experience I had at AMD was reigniting Radeon over the past couple of years with Radeon Technologies Group, growing its market share from high teens to low thirties, and achieving a record revenue quarter late last year. It was a ton of work, but I've never had so much fun, visited so many great places, or worked with such amazing people. I'm also incredibly grateful to the tech press, who have been my second family for the past couple of decades, and I'll always remember our adventures in places like Tunis, Iceland, Macau, Ibiza and the USS Hornet, to name a few. I hope there will be more of that one day.

I'll fill you all in on my new opportunity in the coming days and weeks. In the mean time, I'm going to enjoy a few days of vacation where I don't have to be constantly checking a work smartphone to see what's going on back in the office (that hasn't happened since I got my first BlackBerry in 2002).

Cheers, Chris