Sharmion Kerley, MIPI Director of Marketing and Membership
Following the recent announcement by longtime chair Joel Huloux (STMicroelectronics) of his upcoming retirement, the MIPI Alliance Board of Directors has appointed new leadership for the first time in nearly a decade. As detailed in a 5 April 2022 press release, Sanjiv Desai (Intel Corporation), MIPI’s vice chair since 2013, was appointed chair and board member Rick Wietfeldt (Qualcomm Incorporated) has been appointed vice chair. The transition became effective March 23.
In conjunction with these appointments, Peter Lefkin, managing director since 2011, has been promoted to MIPI Alliance executive director and will continue to serve as board secretary. Hezi Saar (Synopsys Inc.) remains board treasurer, a role in which he has served since 2016.
“On behalf of the MIPI board, we look forward to continuing to build upon the foundation, momentum and successes established during Joel's tenure,” Peter wrote in an announcement to MIPI working group leaders. “Having two long-term, senior MIPI representatives step into new leadership roles will ensure a continuity of MIPI's mission. Mobile is by no means complete, and we will maintain this focus while our members implement MIPI specifications in a wide variety of beyond mobile applications including automotive, IoT and industrial.”
Desai Assumes Chair Role
Sanjiv joined the MIPI board in 2006, first serving as treasurer and then stepping into the vice chair role in 2013. He has over 30 years of industry experience in various architecture and engineering management positions in the areas of central processing unit (CPU), chipset designs and platform development. Sanjiv is a senior director in the Client Computing Group’s architecture team at Intel, responsible for defining Intel’s next-generation client platform architectures. He also leads Intel’s client platforms standards strategy development focused on wired interfaces.
“With his combination of industry and MIPI Alliance experience, Sanjiv Desai is well-equipped to lead the organization forward as more industries leverage mobile technologies in their designs,” Joel said in the MIPI press release. “It has been a pleasure to be a part of MIPI’s evolution since its early days, and I look forward to watching the organization continue to develop its technology roadmap to help drive further growth across mobile, the IoT (Internet of Things), automotive, industrial, 5G and other ecosystems.”
Wietfeldt Moves to Vice Chair Role
Rick has been actively involved in MIPI since it was founded. A member of the board of directors since 2018, he also currently serves as co-chair of the MIPI Security Working Group and was chair of the MIPI Technical Steering Group (TSG) from 2012 to 2018. He is a frequent presenter and author on technical subjects for the MIPI Alliance. For his significant contributions to various working groups and his leadership of the TSG, Rick was recognized with a MIPI Lifetime Achievement Award in 2014. He is currently a senior director, technology, at Qualcomm.
Joel Huloux: Nearly Two Decades of MIPI Service
Joel has played an instrumental role in MIPI since its formative days, serving on the board since MIPI's founding in 2003 and taking the chair position in 2008. Under his leadership, MIPI has grown to more than 350 members and adopted more than 50 specifications that have been implemented in billions of devices worldwide, including every smartphone on the market today. During his tenure, MIPI specifications also have been extended into multiple adjacent industries including the IoT, automotive and industrial, while numerous industry liaisons have further expanded MIPI's reach. For his efforts, Joel was recognized with a MIPI Lifetime Achievement Award in 2013. He will remain on the board until a new ST representative is appointed later this year.
“Joel Huloux’s leadership of the MIPI Alliance has been exemplary,” Sanjiv said. “His dedication to MIPI’s mission has been clear. By maintaining focus on the key requirements for mobile devices, Joel has steered the Alliance in the development of a comprehensive portfolio of specifications that are well-suited to an ever-broadening range of applications. I am honored to follow in his footsteps and continue this important work with our members.”
Peter Lefkin Recognized for Continued Leadership
Peter has been providing leadership and guidance to the standards development community for more than 20 years. As chief operating officer/chief financial officer for the IEEE Industry Standards and Technology Organization (IEEE-ISTO), he played a key role in the formation of the MIPI Alliance and became its managing director in 2011. As the senior staff executive on the MIPI team, Peter has responsibility for all MIPI activities and operations, from strategy development to implementation.
Read the board appointment announcement »