Dr Richard Marks PS4 PlayStation 4 PSVR Sony 1

One of PlayStation’s most important employees has left Sony and joined forces with Google, as rumours escalate that the search engine giant is readying a console of its own. Dr Richard Marks fronted the Japanese giant’s oft-underreported Magic Lab department, the research and development division responsible for EyeToy, PlayStation Move, and, most recently, PlayStation VR.

Interestingly, he’ll be teaming up with another ex-Sony veteran: Phil Harrison. “Delighted that Richard Marks is joining Google,” he tweeted. “Exciting addition to the Advanced Technology and Products (ATAP) team.” Not a massive amount is known about the tech company’s gaming endeavours, but rumours suggest it’s developing a new piece of hardware named Yeti which will focus on PlayStation Now-style streaming.

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“ATAP is at the intersection of science and application where our goal is to solve significant problems and close the gap between what if and what is,” a Google spokesperson told GamesBeat. “We’re super excited about Richard joining the senior team and look forward to his contributions.”

This is actually a big loss for Sony, as Marks is something of a genius – his track record of tech innovations speaks for itself. He’s worked with PlayStation since 1999, though, so there’s a good chance he wanted a fresh challenge, which Google has seemingly provided. He’ll be missed, but we’re sure the Magic Lab will continue to create innovative new products in his absence.

[source venturebeat.com, via polygon.com]