AMD claims that ex-employees fled with stolen documents

When Nvidia hired Robert Feldstein, it got more than just one of AMDs’s top execs — it also got some of AMD’s most sensitive trade secrets.

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Or at least that’s AMD’s fears. The chipmaker alleges that the former vice-president and three other former employees copied company documents before leaving for Nvidia last year. Chief among these files are highly sensitive licensing agreements and proposed licensing strategies, as ZDNet reports.

“The volume of materials that these three defendants collectively transferred to storage devices, each of which is unaccounted for, as they left to work for AMD’s competitor, exceeds 100,000 electronic files,” AMD claims.

But Feldstein didn’t just steal documents. AMD has also accused the former vice-president of violating a “no-solicitation of employees” promise when he actively sought to bring other AMD workers to Nvidia.

Before departing AMD last July, Feldstein helped get AMD technology into game consoles like the Xbox 360, Playstation 3, and Nintendo Wii. As Nvidia confirmed last year, Feldstein will be doing largely the same job in his new gig.

Given that both Microsoft and Sony are preparing their next-generation consoles, it’s not particularly surprising to see the chip makers trying to keep their secrets as locked down as possible.

“AMD will always take action to aggressively protect its confidential, proprietary and trade secret information. We believe the facts are clearly outlined in our pleadings and are supported by forensic evidence,” AMD said in a statement to VentureBeat.