Is it just me or has AMD just pulled off one of the most amazing semiconductor comebacks of the century? Let’s take a closer look.
Who doesn’t long for the days when Intel and AMD went head to head in the battle for microprocessor supremacy? Back then Intel, was still operating under the Andrew Grove mantra of “Only the Paranoid Survive”… Read More
Intel is once again adding a new computing form factor to the mix. At CES Intel announced its new Intel Compute Card. It combines CPU, GPU, DRAM, storage, WiFi, and communications inside a small modular housing slightly larger than a credit card and about 5mm thick. Intel already offers its Compute Stick, but it is limited in its interface… Read More
In early September of 2016 I published an article “The 2016 Leading Edge Semiconductor Landscape” that proved to be very popular with many views, comments and reposting’s. Since I wrote that article a lot of new data has become available enabling some projections to be replaced by actual values and new analysis… Read More
In June of 2013 Edward Snowden copied and leaked classified information from the National Security Agency (NSA). His actions exposed numerous surveillance programs that many governments around the world reacted to, including China. In September of 2013 China Vice Premier Ma Kai declared semiconductors a key sector for the … Read More
The global semiconductor market posted strong 11.6% growth in 3[SUP]rd[/SUP] quarter 2016 from 2[SUP]nd[/SUP] quarter, according to WSTS. This strength is reflected in the 3[SUP]rd[/SUP] quarter revenue growth reported by the major semiconductor suppliers. Of the 12 companies, half (Intel, Samsung, Broadcom, TI, Micron… Read More
In the first session of IEDM on Monday, December 5th there were two papers presented on 7nm processes. The first paper was from TSMC and the second paper was from the Global Alliance of GLOBALFOUNDRIES, IBM and Samsung.… Read More
The cost trend for leading edge semiconductor technologies is a subject of some controversy in the industry. Cost is a complex issue with many interacting factors and much of the information out in the industry is in my opinion misleading or incorrect. In this article, I will discuss each of the factors as well as present a view of … Read More
The embedded FPGA business has been getting quite a bit of press lately so it is definitely worth a closer look. Intel started it all when they acquired the #2 FPGA company Altera for $16.7B last year. Microsoft is also a big FPGA fan for search and deep learning. In fact, Microsoft’s commitment to FPGAs, specifically Altera FPGAs,… Read More
I had the good fortune to be able to attend a very informative five-day photonic integrated circuit (PIC) training this last week in Santa Clara, CA. The training was organized by Erik Pennings of 7 Pennies consulting and hosted by Tektronix. Several ecosystem partners from the design automation, photonic foundries and photonic… Read More
I had the privilege to attend a five-day PIC (photonic integrated circuit) training hosted by 7-Penniesand Tektronix in San Jose, CA this week. This training was quite comprehensive and covered photonic materials and platforms, design automation, fabrication, packaging and test. It also included invited talks from photonic… Read More
