Intel and AMD have what can only be described as a complex history of fierce competition, cooperation, and ebbs and flows. You might think from the he

Hell Freezes Over as AMD and Intel Come Together for x86

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2024-10-16 12:30:03

Intel and AMD have what can only be described as a complex history of fierce competition, cooperation, and ebbs and flows. You might think from the headline that AMD just bought Intel, but that is not the case. Instead, the two companies are coming together to support x86 customers. At OCP Summit 2024 today, the companies announced a new x86 advisory board. The goals are to enable consistency and accelerate the time to market of the x86 ecosystem. A subtext here is that AMD and Intel are working to unify the x86 ISA between the two companies instead of competitively developing their own x86 ISA flavors.

The advisory group aims to unite industry leaders to shape the future of x86 and foster developer innovation through a more unified set of instructions and architectural interfaces. This initiative will enhance compatibility, predictability and consistency across x86 product offerings. To achieve this, the group will solicit technical input from the x86 hardware and software communities on essential functions and features. Collaboration will facilitate the creation of consistent and compatible implementations of key x86 architectural features and programming models, extending across all sectors – including data centers, cloud, client, edge and embedded devices – ultimately delivering downstream benefits to customers. The intended outcomes include:

As vigorous competitors, Intel and AMD at the same time share a history of industry collaboration focused on platform-level advancements, the introduction of standards, and security vulnerability mitigation within the x86 ecosystem. Their joint efforts have shaped key technologies, including PCI, PCIe, Advanced Configuration and Power Interface (ACPI). Both companies also played a pivotal role in developing USB, a vital connectivity standard for all computers regardless of the processor. This advisory group takes this industry collaboration to the next level for the benefit of the entire computing ecosystem and as a catalyst for product innovation. (Source: Intel and AMD press release.)