We begin tonight with a bit of breaking news that we’re sure you’ve all heard about by now: Mark Papermaster, the controversially IBM figure that signed onto the Apple crew back in 2008, has left his position as the overseer of Apple’s mobile devices. The New York Times reports that Papermaster oversaw projects related to the iPhone 4 including the A4 chip and the Retina Display. Though it wasn’t specifically mentioned whether Papermaster was fired or encourage to step down from his position, John Gruber chimed in with a quick comment.
Inside Apple, he’s “the guy responsible for the antenna” - that’s a quote from a source back on July 23. (Another quote from the same source: “Apparently the antenna guys used to have a big chip on their shoulder. No more.”)
Gruber made it clear that Papermaster was axed, and I’m hopefull he’ll have some more to say in the near future. In the meantime, SVP of Macintosh Hardware Engineering Bob Mansfield will take over Papermaster’s role as the company moves forward.
[via New York Times & Daring Fireball]
