Dirk Meyer

Derrick R. "Dirk" Meyer (born November 24, 1961) served as the chief executive officer of Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) from July 18, 2008, until January 10, 2011. He earned a bachelor’s degree in computer engineering from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and an MBA from Boston University Graduate School of Management.

Meyer began his career at DEC, where he co-architected the Alpha 21064 and Alpha 21264 microprocessors, and later worked in Intel’s microprocessor design group. He joined AMD in 1996 and personally led the team that created the Athlon processor. Over time, he held roles as president and chief operating officer, sharing leadership with then-CEO and Chairman Hector Ruiz, and earlier served as president and COO of AMD’s Microprocessor Solutions Sector, overseeing product development, manufacturing, operations, and marketing.

When Meyer became CEO in July 2008, he shifted AMD’s focus to the PC and data center server markets. In 2010, AMD noted that notebook sales were rising, and Meyer argued that the growing mobile and consumer electronics sectors did not shrink the traditional market. He planned to address those markets later, once AMD could commit enough resources. This strategy produced the Bulldozer architecture for PCs and Bobcat for netbooks and tablets—markets then dominated by Intel—with both launching in 2011 and 2012.

Early in 2011, after discussions with AMD’s board, Meyer was removed as CEO. His departure is widely attributed to disagreements over the company’s future direction. Rory Read replaced him later that year. On October 10, 2012, Meyer joined the board of directors for the startup Ocoos.