Executive Team
Meet the Chipworks Executive Team
Terry Ludlow
Founder and CEO
Terry Ludlow, Founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (CEO), is a recognized pioneer in semiconductor reverse engineering, and was among the first to realize its value for Intellectual Property (IP) groups and technology teams. He founded Chipworks in 1992 to offer semiconductor and microelectronics system reverse engineering services to companies seeking to build a competitive advantage, and protect and grow the potential of their intellectual property. As CEO, Terry continues to provide the strategy, vision, and driving force that have earned Chipworks its position as the premier source of knowledge of what's inside technology.
Terry first developed his passion for reverse engineering while working at Mosaid Technologies as the Manager, Design Analysis Services, and heading the Reverse Engineering Group for three years. Responding to market demand, Mr. Ludlow seized the opportunity and launched the industry devoted to providing evidence of patent infringement and competitive intelligence through reverse engineering.
Today, Chipworks has more than 125 full time dedicated professionals worldwide. IP groups and their legal counsel in the world’s semiconductor and electronics companies trust Chipworks for success in patent licensing and litigation – earning hundreds of millions of dollars in patent licenses and saving as much in royalty payments. Research & Development and Product Management rely on Chipworks for success in new product design and launch – saving hundreds of millions of dollars in design and earning even more through superior product design and faster launches.
Mr. Ludlow frequently addresses industry conferences including the Licensing Executives Society, Corporate Patent Congress, Wall Street Transcript, Information and Technology Association of Canada, Patent Strategies, Brussels IP Summit, Ocean Tomo, IP Business Congress, FSA/GSA, and SMC. He holds numerous patents for his reverse engineering innovations and regularly authors articles for publications around the world.
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Julia Elvidge
President
As President, Julia Elvidge has been a vital part of building Chipworks, the recognized leader in reverse engineering and patent infringement analysis for the world’s largest semiconductor and electronics companies. She joined Chipworks in 1994, and held increasingly senior management positions prior to being named President in 2003. As a result of her longstanding involvement and guidance, intellectual property groups and their legal counsel have come to trust Chipworks for success in patent licensing and litigation – earning hundreds of millions of dollars in patent licenses and saving as much in royalty payments. Research & Development and Product Management rely on Chipworks for success in new product design and launch – saving hundreds of millions of dollars in design and earning even more through superior product design and faster launches.
Julia began her career with Mosaid Technologies, where she grew to recognize the enormous potential reverse engineering held for technology companies. She then joined LSI Logic, where she honed her expertise in ASIC design, ultimately leading her own engineering group. Along the way, Ms. Elvidge has been awarded numerous patents for her work.
Ms. Elvidge has served as a board member of the Information Technology Association of Canada, is a longstanding member of the Licensing Executives Society, and is a member of Mindtrust, a Canadian CEO technology forum. She has won numerous awards for her contributions to entrepreneurship in the high-tech industry, and is a regular speaker at intellectual property events, such as the Licensing Executives Society annual meeting and Ocean Tomo.
A technology enthusiast from a young age, Julia was one of six women in a class of 100 men to pursue an education in electrical engineering. She earned her degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Waterloo, in Ontario.
In addition to her remarkable career and company success, Julia is a single parent, devoted to her two children.
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Mike Thumm
Vice President, Patent Intelligence
As Vice President, Patent Intelligence, Mike leads Chipworks’ services to IP Groups and Law Firms. Mike and his team help clients around the world achieve favorable outcomes in licensing negotiation and litigation, grow their licensing programs, and make sound patent acquisition decisions. In this way, his customers get the most value from their patents through increased royalties or reduced cross license payments. Having joined Chipworks in 1997, Mike has held numerous senior positions, including the management of the company’s financial assets as Chief Financial Officer for a number of years.
During this time, Mike was also a founding member of Patent Solutions, a Chipworks partnership involved in assisting companies in monetizing their IP. In this capacity, he gained significant knowledge of the IP ecosystem/landscape and the details of patent licensing negotiations and litigations. With his long standing tenure, Mike has played an instrumental role in building the company, and helping it successfully prosper as an international player.
Mike brings over 20 years of experience in professional services. Prior to joining Chipworks, Mike was a partner with Arthur Andersen (now Deloitte), where he was responsible for their audit and business advisory services practice in Ottawa. As partner, he assured that his clients were receiving the highest quality of services and value. He also spent several years at Price Waterhouse.
Highly regarded for his business and technical acumen, Mike has been an invited speaker at key industry events, such as the Licensing Executives Society (LES) meetings and Ocean Tomo. He has also authored several articles on patent licensing for print and on-line publications such as Patent World, les Nouvelles, and IP Frontline. Mike has been a member of LES for a number of years, and holds memberships with the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Ontario and the Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants.
Mike received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Administration from Brock University in St. Catharines, Ontario. Outside work he enjoys all sports, with distance running his current favourite activity to clear his mind. He also enjoys music, and is rumored to have an extensive collection of hip-hop.
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Gary Tomkins
Vice President, Technical Intelligence
As Vice President, Technical Intelligence, Gary leads Chipworks services to Design Teams, R&D Teams, and Product Management. Gary and his team work closely with customers around the globe, delivering technical analysis that helps them to benchmark product roadmaps, reduce the time-to-market, and reduce research and development risk. Gary had held other Vice President positions at Chipworks and has also led circuit and process reverse engineering teams focused on providing competitive technical intelligence.
Gary brings more than 20 years of semiconductor and telecommunications technology and business experience to Chipworks. Most recently, he was Director of Operations at Bookham, and prior to that, Director of Fab Operations for Nortel Network’s High Performance Optical Components line of business. In this role, he was accountable for the production of semiconductor lasers, detectors, and modulators used in modern optical networks. Throughout his tenure with Nortel Networks, Gary held increasingly senior technical positions, including Senior Manager, GaAs Fab Operations. In this role, he managed all engineering and operations for wafer fabrication, as well as probing and testing.
He honed his engineering skills at STC Components in the U.K. where he developed silicon process technologies, including the first commercial polysilicon-emitter bipolar processes and complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) processes for fast access static random access memories (SRAMS). While in England, Gary worked for STC Semiconductors and Standard Telecommunications Laboratories.
Gary earned his Bachelor of Science degree with honors in Physical Electronics at the University of Warwick in Coventry, England. In his spare time, Gary enjoys playing soccer, and has even demonstrated competence with a hockey stick and skates.
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Bill Davies
Vice President, Core Capabilities
As Vice President, Core Capabilities, Bill Davies is responsible for the processes, equipment, quality, and technology used in Chipworks’ laboratories. Bill brings 22 years of experience in designing and building semiconductors, optoelectronics, and printed circuit cards to the company.
Prior to joining Chipworks, Bill worked with Tundra Semiconductor, where he leveraged his operations leadership expertise to work with and manage international suppliers, and lead several business acquisition teams. In addition, Bill was the product manager for the company’s highest revenue-producing product line. Before joining Tundra, he worked for 12 years at Nortel Networks. Bill’s engineering experience there included assembly, test, back end wafer fabrication, and optoelectronics, as well as managing several teams developing next-generation packaging technologies. Bill began his career with General Dynamics, formerly Computing Devices, working on military electronics systems.
An expert in his field, Bill is a well-known speaker, author, and webinar presenter. His work has been published in numerous trade journals including Power Management, Designline, Advanced Microelectronics, and Semiconductor International. He was awarded two patents in the field of packaging, received the Nortel President’s Award for Innovation, and has taught college courses in statistical process control.
Bill earned his Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, with a minor in Management Science, from the University of Waterloo in Ontario. Outside of his many responsibilities at Chipworks, Bill is an Engineer in Residence at an Ottawa Public School, and the bassist in a well-known local rock band.
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Dave Fraser
Vice President, Marketing
As Vice President of Marketing, Dave Fraser oversees all marketing activities, and plays a key role in corporate strategic planning. Building businesses is the common thread in Dave’s career. Whether serving on the management team of a start-up, building a consulting practice, helping launch products in channels, or advising clients on market expansion strategies, he has a track record of driving growth at home and abroad.
Dave brings to Chipworks 20 years of experience in strategic marketing, business development, and client services across numerous industries. Prior to joining Chipworks, he served as Vice President of Client Services at a marketing automation software company. During his tenure in software, Dave also worked as Vice President Alliances and Vice President Sales and Marketing. Previously, he was Director of Business Development at a global telecommunications hardware vendor, and Director at Deloitte Consulting/Braxton Associates, a counseling companies on business strategies. In addition to his experience throughout Canada and the U.S., he worked and lived in Latin America for five years.
Dave holds a Master’s degree in Business Administration from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, a Master’s degree in Public Policy from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Philosophy and Politics from Queen’s University, Kingston, Ontario. He has been a panelist at more than 15 industry events, a guest on national radio, and has authored more than 10 articles for a wide range of publications, including The Economist Intelligence Unit.
In his spare time, Dave is a Masters swimmer, and lead guitarist in a rock band that has raised tens of thousands of dollars for local charities. Notwithstanding the band’s success, several listeners have advised Dave to not quit his day job.
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Susan Richards
Chief Financial Officer
As Chief Financial Officer (CFO), Susan Richards oversees all financial activities and key business metrics for Chipworks. Susan has more than 12 years of experience in strategic financial planning, corporate legal matters, and budgeting. Throughout her career, she has worked cohesively with boards, executives, managers, and external resources to facilitate congruence to meet corporate initiatives.
Prior to joining Chipworks, Susan served as CFO at a software development firm, where she helped build profitability through operational efficiency and performance management. She has helped guide organizations through both rapid growth and industry downturns.
Susan earned her Bachelor of Business Administration from the University of Prince Edward Island, Charlottetown, PEI before becoming a Certified Management Accountant (CMA). Susan is a recipient of the CMA’s Creative Leadership Award in recognition of her professional achievements. She is a very active CMA, and has previously served on the Board of Governors for the Society of Management Accountants of Ontario.
Throughout her career, she has actively supported many charitable and business community causes. Susan is an active member in a variety of professional associations and is often called upon to speak at CMA Ontario seminars and other professional events.
Outside of Chipworks, Susan is an avid painter, and is known for her abstract portraits of calculators. When not surrounded by calculators, Susan tries to stay active with long distance running, as well as the joys of chasing after three little ”hims” at home.
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