Krish Prabhu named AT&T Labs president and CEO

AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) has appointed veteran telecom executive Krish Prabhu as president and CEO of AT&T Labs. Prabhu replaces retiring president and CEO Keith Cambron, who has led AT&T Labs since 2005.

The appointment brings Prabhu back to the place where his career started in 1980. After leaving the Bell Labs in 1984, Prabhu served in a variety of executive positions with equipment makers, most notably as CEO of both Alcatel USA and Tellabs. Most recently, he served as interim president and CEO at mobile broadband solutions company Tekelec, where he also held a seat on the board. He also has seats on the boards of Altera and ADVA AG.

Prabhu also has experience as a venture capitalist at Morganthaler Ventures and Mobility Ventures.

"Krish has a passion for innovation that fits our culture, and the right professional experience to lead AT&T Labs at a dynamic time in our innovation program," said John Donovan, AT&T CTO. “He’ll be a key driver for AT&T’s innovation strategy, which focuses on creating an open environment and bringing the best minds together to deliver the best products and services for our customers.”

"AT&T Labs is one of the world’s all-time great innovation engines, with more than 1,200 leading scientists and engineers generating more than two patentable ideas a day,” said Prabhu. "The opportunity to lead this team is a professional dream come true.”