# Atiq Raza

> Atiq Raza is a technology entrepreneur, engineer and investor based in Palo Alto. The former NexGen chairman and CEO became an AMD executive after its 1996 acquisition of NexGen, later serving as president and chief operating officer. He founded RMI and is Virsec’s co-founder, executive chairman and former CEO, with board experience across semiconductor and software companies.

- **Role:** Executive Chairman at Virsec
- **Organizations:** Virsec, NexGen, Advanced Micro Devices, RMI Corporation, Raza Foundries, VLSI Technology, Calient Technologies, Arteris, Weebit Nano, PeerNova, CloudDefense, TeleSoft Partners, Home of Hope
- **From:** Lahore, Pakistan
- **Education:** BS with honors in Physics, University of the Punjab, BS with honors in Electronic Engineering, University of London, MS in Materials Science and Engineering, Stanford University
- **Known for:** Led NexGen as CEO before AMD’s January 1996 acquisition., Helped deliver AMD’s K6 processor and served in senior technical and operating roles at AMD., Founded RMI, acquired by NetLogic in 2009.

## Career timeline

- **1988** — Joined NexGen as executive vice president, responsible for engineering, marketing and prototype manufacturing.
- **1991** — Became NexGen president and CEO.
- **1994** — Elected NexGen chairman in May.
- **1996** — AMD acquired NexGen on January 17; Raza became AMD senior vice president and chief technical officer.
- **1997** — Became AMD executive vice president and a member of the Office of the CEO; AMD brought the K6 to market.
- **1998** — Became AMD co-chief operating officer in October.
- **1999** — Served as AMD president and COO; left the company in July and subsequently built Raza Foundries.
- **2001** — Founded RMI, according to NetLogic’s 2009 merger-announcement call.
- **2009** — RMI was acquired by NetLogic; Raza became chief technology advisor.
- **2014** — Joined the Arteris board in January.
- **2018** — As Virsec CEO, participated in its $24 million Series B financing announcement.
- **2019** — Appointed a Weebit Nano non-executive director on July 1.
- **2020** — Moved from Virsec CEO to executive chairman when Dave Furneaux became CEO in June.
- **2023** — Scheduled for a public conversation moderated by Pervez Hoodbhoy at The Black Hole in Islamabad on August 26.

## Achievements

- Led NexGen as CEO before AMD’s January 1996 acquisition.
- Helped deliver AMD’s K6 processor and served in senior technical and operating roles at AMD.
- Founded RMI, acquired by NetLogic in 2009.
- Led Virsec as CEO before transitioning to executive chairman in 2020.
- Served on Stanford’s School of Engineering Advisory Council for eight years until 2016.

## Latest updates

- **2026-06** — An Arteris Form 4 filed June 4 identifies Raza as a director and records a June 2 restricted-stock-unit grant.
- **2026-02** — Signed Arteris’s February 12 registration statement as a director.

## Links

- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/atiq-raza-25511913

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/atiq-raza
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-10-25