The lead developer behind Enyo, Hewlett-Packard's HTML5-based WebOS development environment, is leaving HP -- and he's taking several of his teammates with him, The Verge reported Friday.
Matthew McNulty, HP's senior director of frameworks and tools for webOS -- who describes himself as "Enyo Czar" on his LinkedIn profile -- is starting a new position at Google "shortly," according to The Verge. McNulty joined Palm in 2009 and came to HP in its acquisition of that company the following year.
Despite the defections, an HP spokesperson told The Verge that HP is still on track with its plan to launch Open webOS, its full, open-source version of the operating system, in September.
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Enyo lets developers write applications that run on both mobile devices and PC Web browsers. HP Chairman Ray Lane has referred to Enyo as "the leading Web app development environment today."
WebOS still enjoys a solid reputation within the developer community, but that has not stopped the outward flow of WebOS talent from HP. Some developers and engineers have landed at Apple, Intel and a host of mobile startups.
With at least some of the Enyo team headed to Google, Android is set to get an infusion of new talent. "This is great news for Android," said one source familiar with the situation, who requested anonymity. "These guys were super smart and a key reason for the uniqueness of webOS."
In January, HP CEO Meg Whitman told CRN that Open WebOS would have a "huge advantages" over iOS, which she described as a "closed system."
Whitman also described Android as "incredibly fragmented" and said it may become more closed because of Google's $12.5 billion acquisition of Motorola Mobility, which closed this week.
