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Who We Are

Applied Materials is a global leader in materials engineering solutions used to produce virtually every new chip and advanced display in the world. We design, build and service cutting-edge equipment that helps our customers manufacture display and semiconductor chips - the brains of devices we use every day. As the foundation of the global electronics industry, Applied enables the exciting technologies that literally connect our world - like AI and IoT. If you want to push the boundaries of materials science and engineering to create next generation technology, join us to deliver material innovation that changes the world.

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You'll benefit from a supportive work culture that encourages you to learn, develop, and grow your career as you take on challenges and drive innovative solutions for our customers. We empower our team to push the boundaries of what is possible-while learning every day in a supportive leading global company. Visit our Careers website to learn more.

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Role Overview

Based in Singapore, this role is responsible for defining and driving pathfinding strategy for N+2 and beyond advanced packaging technologies, leading disruptive innovation that shapes future integration architectures and unlocks new value creation opportunities. The Director will build and lead a high-impact team focused on exploratory, pre-product technologies, developing solutions such as D2W, RDL, CoWoS, TSV, etc and connecting emerging technology inflections to customer and market roadmaps.

This position operates at the intersection of technology disruption, customer insight, and ecosystem co-innovation, with a mandate to translate early-stage innovation into scalable, differentiated solutions.

Disruptive Pathfinding & Technology Strategy

• Define and execute long-range (N+2 and beyond) pathfinding roadmap for advanced packaging, identifying next inflection points in integration, interconnect, materials, and architectures.

• Drive concept incubation and feasibility exploration for disruptive packaging approaches beyond existing platforms (e.g., novel interconnect schemes, heterogeneous integration architectures, advanced substrate innovations).

• Evaluate emerging technology options and guide make/buy/partner decisions to establish differentiated capability ahead of industry adoption cycles.

• Anticipate and define technology inflections aligned to AI, HPC, memory integration, chiplet ecosystems, and future system architectures.

Innovation Leadership & Team Building

• Build, lead, and inspire a world-class pathfinding and innovation team, fostering a culture of bold thinking, experimentation, and calculated risk-taking.

• Instill an innovation-first mindset, encouraging teams to challenge existing assumptions and explore unconventional solutions.

• Establish structured frameworks for idea generation, incubation, rapid prototyping, and down-selection.

• Mentor technical leaders and create a pipeline of innovation talent capable of sustaining long-term differentiation.

Customer & Market-Driven Innovation

• Translate customer roadmaps, system architecture trends, and market inflections into actionable technology development strategies.

• Engage deeply with key customers to identify latent needs and unmet challenges not addressed by current packaging solutions.

• Drive creation of new product concepts and technology platforms that deliver step-function improvements in performance, cost, power, and scalability.

• Position offerings to create clear value differentiation and long-term competitive advantage.

Ecosystem Development & Strategic Partnerships

• Build and lead a collaborative innovation ecosystem across materials suppliers, substrate vendors, OSATs, foundries, equipment partners, and research institutions.

• Identify and activate disruptive partnerships that accelerate innovation cycles and enable early validation of emerging technologies.

• Drive joint development programs and consortia engagement to shape industry direction and standards.

Program Leadership & Execution Governance

• Establish governance models for early-stage technology programs, balancing exploration with execution discipline.

• Drive alignment across engineering, product, and business units to transition pathfinding concepts into development pipelines.

• Develop executive-level narratives and decision frameworks to communicate technology trade-offs, investments, and strategic priorities.

• Ensure learnings from early exploration are captured, scaled, and leveraged across the organization.

Leadership Expectations

• Visionary Technology Leader: Anticipates industry disruption and defines future-state architectures ahead of the market.

• Innovation Catalyst: Creates an environment where breakthrough ideas are generated, tested, and scaled.

• Strategic Connector: Bridges customer roadmaps, internal capabilities, and ecosystem innovations into cohesive strategies.

• Builder of Teams & Culture: Attracts, develops, and retains top talent while fostering collaboration and accountability.

• Decisive Change Agent: Operates effectively in ambiguity, making high-impact decisions with incomplete data.

Core Qualifications

• 15+ years of experience in semiconductor technology, including advanced packaging, front-end processing, or adjacent domains.

• Demonstrated leadership in technology pathfinding, innovation strategy, or early-stage platform development.

• Strong understanding of current advanced packaging technologies (D2W, RDL, CoWoS, TSV, etc), with the ability to think beyond existing paradigms.

• Proven experience building and leading cross-functional or exploratory R&D teams.

• Ability to translate complex technology concepts into business impact and strategic direction.

Preferred Qualifications

• Advanced degree (PhD/MS) in Materials Science, Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Physics, or related field.

• Track record of delivering disruptive or first-of-a-kind technology solutions.

• Experience in heterogeneous integration, chiplet ecosystems, or next-generation packaging architectures.

• Strong network across industry ecosystem and research communities.

Impact

• Shape the company's long-term innovation trajectory in advanced packaging.

• Enable next-generation technology breakthroughs aligned with future system demands.

• Drive value creation through differentiated solutions and early market positioning.

Travel

• ~20% for customer engagement, ecosystem collaboration, and industry events.

Work Location

• Singapore (Candidate must be willing to relocate)

Additional Information

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Applied Materials is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, national origin, citizenship, ancestry, religion, creed, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, disability, veteran or military status, or any other basis prohibited by law.