Re:ARM v8-A with Scalable Vector Extensions: Aiming for HPC ...
by jdietrich on Monday August 22, 2016 @01:32PM
(#12337929)
As the giant in the room, Intel has further to fall. Intel's market cap is more double that of AMD, ARM and Nvidia combined.
Intel's real competitors are TSMC and GlobalFoundries, who are architecture agnostic. TSMC's market cap is ~90% of Intel's; GF are private, but they're probably in the same ballpark.
Intel is in a unique (and uniquely challenging) position as both an IP and fab company. This vertical integration has proved highly profitable for Intel, but it is also highly risky. Their recent decision to start manufacturing ARM chips points at this uncertain future - diversification is a high priority if they are to reliably recoup the costs of <10nm fabs.
The desktop market that Intel dominate is dying a slow death. Intel has failed miserably in the mobile market and are under threat on several fronts in the server and HPC market. x86 has been a tremendous asset for Intel, but it could easily become a hindrance. Intel is really two very different businesses (IP and fab) that are shackled together.
Intel's real competitors are TSMC and GlobalFoundries, who are architecture agnostic. TSMC's market cap is ~90% of Intel's; GF are private, but they're probably in the same ballpark.
Intel is in a unique (and uniquely challenging) position as both an IP and fab company. This vertical integration has proved highly profitable for Intel, but it is also highly risky. Their recent decision to start manufacturing ARM chips points at this uncertain future - diversification is a high priority if they are to reliably recoup the costs of <10nm fabs.
The desktop market that Intel dominate is dying a slow death. Intel has failed miserably in the mobile market and are under threat on several fronts in the server and HPC market. x86 has been a tremendous asset for Intel, but it could easily become a hindrance. Intel is really two very different businesses (IP and fab) that are shackled together.