Meet Lisa Su, MIT graduate who began her semiconductor career at Texas Instruments, later she became AMD CEO

Lisa Su is the chief executive officer of Advanced Micro Devices (AMD). She has spent much of her life working on computer chips and semiconductor technology. Su became the head of AMD in October 2024. She has led the company's efforts to expand its business in computing, gaming and artificial intelligence.

Su was born in Taiwan, and moved to the US with her family when she was a young child. She developed an interest in technology early in life, which later led her to study electrical engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

Su also worked at Texas Instruments, IBM and Freescale Semiconductor. Her experience combined technical research with business leadership.

All about her journey and career

Her parents encouraged her interest in science and mathematics since she was a child, and this made her take apart electronic devices to understand how they worked.

In 1986, she went to the Bronx High School of Science in New York before joining MIT. She earned her bachelor's degree in electrical engineering in 1990. Then, she got a master's degree in 1991 and a doctorate in 1994.

Su also developed a strong interest in semiconductors, the materials used for making computer chips.

At Texas Instruments, she began her career, and worked at the company's Semiconductor Process and Device Centre from 1994 to 1995.

Later she joined IBM, and spent 13 years in engineering and leadership roles. During this period, she worked on semiconductor research and development and eventually became vice president of IBM's Semiconductor Research and Development Center.

At IBM, she was involved in the development of copper interconnect technology for computer chips. Copper replaced aluminium in many chip applications because it could improve electrical performance.

Rise to senior leadership

In 2007, Su joined Freescale Semiconductor as chief technology officer. She later became senior vice president and general manager of its Networking and Multimedia business.

In January 2012, Su joined AMD as senior vice president and general manager of global business units. She later became chief operating officer.

AMD appointed her as president and chief executive officer in October 2014.

When Su became CEO, AMD was facing financial difficulties and strong competition in the semiconductor market. The company was known for processors used in personal computers and other computing products.

Under her leadership, AMD expanded its focus on high-performance computing and developed products for data centres, gaming and other markets. Its Ryzen processors and EPYC server processors became important parts of its product range.