AMD Keeps The Innovation Heat On IntelAMD Keeps The Innovation Heat On Intel

Three years ago Advanced Micro Devices was an afterthought to most within the technology field. The company was a persistent gnat that was always buzzing around microprocessor giant Intel, but provided minimal disruption. By the time AMD held its annual Technology Day conference on Thursday, it had transformed into a truly disruptive force in the industry, and it continues to put the technology innovation heat on its larger rival."The competition has been trying to chase us, and now we've reset and raised the bar," said Marty Seyer, senior VP of AMD's commercial segment.

By beating Intel to market over the past few years with the first 64-bit x86 processors and the first dual-core x86 processors, and then by providing better performance-per-watt processors for the server market, AMD has firmly established itself as a true innovator and has secured a strong position in the microprocessor market for the foreseeable future.

Intel gained some headlines at its Intel Developer Forum earlier this year when it introduced its "next-generation" Core architecture, which will be used in all its processors beginning midyear. Intel also pledged to bring much more power-efficient processors to the server market.

Seyer said Thursday that even with improvements from its new Core architecture, Intel will continue to have to play catch-up on the innovation curve.

"They are reacting to our leadership," he said. "You can't compare their future products to our current products...Make no mistake, we will continue to have the leadership crown for performance per watt."

Over the past two years AMD has enjoyed its best market acceptance in its long history of battling Intel in the x86 market. In the first quarter of 2006, AMD has seen its overall x86 market share grow to 22%, according to Mercury Research, and to nearly 26% of the x86 server market, according to . Capturing as much as a third of the market within the next two years no longer seems like a pipe dream. On Thursday AMD detailed its own "next-generation" processor architecture for servers, workstations, and desktops, which it plans to debut midyear 2007. The company promises the new architecture will continue to enhance its power efficiency leadership and include new functionality like the ability to alter individual processor cores to match application workloads. It's been a long and difficult road for AMD, but the company now appears well-positioned for the long haul.