Google May Be Designing Chips In Threat To Intel

[videogames101]

google is a train wreck waiting to happen, i just feel it in my gut

 

[Virgorising]

google is a train wreck waiting to happen, i just feel it in my gut

I like your gut.()

Greed and avarice and the end justifies the means are among my least fav things.

But, I admit, I like android.

 

[SammichPG]

I'd have to imagine the obstacles in making a mechanical object such as a car would be laughable compared to creating new processor technology in the x86 space on a level playing field with Intel. After all, there are many car makers which are basically a guy and his friends and a set of good machine tools

A lot of the problems would arise just in getting the process technology and talent together to do such a thing.

The easiest path would be to buy someone with some of those ingredients already existing, but it would still be inferior unless they REALLY poured the money in and got all the right people in place (ex-Intel insiders from very high levels).

Who needs x86? Whatever software google is using it's a recompile away from running on a new ISA.

MIPS or ARM doesn't really matter.

They're working on networking hardware as well:
http://arstechnica.com/information-...-cisco-down-a-peg-with-open-network-hardware/
http://www.opencompute.org/

They've gotten so big that there might be some advantage in producing custom tailored hardware.

 

[positivedoppler]

AMD just so happen to have a semi custom chip business and arm server cpu ready to roll out in 2014. My money is this is amd behind this. It's freaking brilliant, instead of going toe to toe with Intel you offer a service Intel customers need at a fraction of the cost. Sure you wont be making 2-3k per server chip but you hurt the comptetition while bringing in revenue that previously wasnt there

 

[NTMBK]

The Agnilux acquisition is interesting, and does lend some credence to this story. But they may just have picked up the team to make cheaper and more efficient server designs around existing silicon, not build a whole new CPU... who knows.

If they buy Calxeda, then I'll be interested.

 

[mrmt]

AMD just so happen to have a semi custom chip business and arm server cpu ready to roll out in 2014. My money is this is amd behind this. It's freaking brilliant, instead of going toe to toe with Intel you offer a service Intel customers need at a fraction of the cost. Sure you wont be making 2-3k per server chip but you hurt the comptetition while bringing in revenue that previously wasnt there

AMD embedded business isn't about making bleeding edge custom designs to customers, but slighting modifying AMD standard IP and adding the customer's IP to a given design. This is not what Google wants, if the rumor is correct they would be aiming for a proprietary design, a custom design, not semi custom.

And unless Google workloads were to run on the specific IP blocks only, Google would get the same AMD Piledriver/Kabini dogs of today, but with some fancy custom blocks that would not be able to save the day.

I'm kinda skeptical about Google pursuing that route. They would have to bear the brunt of the entire validation of the chip for servers, an expense that would be waaaay higher than, let's say, console chips and they would have to spend a lot of money in updating the chip otherwise they would be left behind in the industry. I doubt any amount of custom IP would be able to improve performance enough to justify the costs.

A custom architecture is even worse. IBM Power is being licensed because its market is shrinking and Itanium is dying. Google would not be dumb enough to go down on that hole too.

 

[IkebotXP]

I am very interested in learning more about this.

 

[ancientarcher]

http://www.arm.com/products/processors/licensees.php

No license listed for Google.

This lists only the processor (cores) not architecture licensees. Architecture licensees get to design their own core (like Cyclon) while processor licensees are limited to incorporating the licensed processor core in their designs.

Hence, you don't see Applied Micro, Apple or AMD in this list. They are all architecture licensees. That list is not that large. And yes by the way, Microsoft is also an ARM architecture licensee

 

[Shivansps]

They could be doing it on MIPS64 too...

 

[Exophase]

Hence, you don't see Applied Micro, Apple or AMD in this list. They are all architecture licensees. That list is not that large. And yes by the way, Microsoft is also an ARM architecture licensee

You do see AMD in the list. Has AMD ever actually confirmed that they're doing their own ARM or is this just speculation? They've announced that they're using A57 in their upcoming server chips. Years ago they talked about using ARM and even then said that it wasn't a good choice until the 64-bit CPUs came out. They've also said that a big motivation for including ARM CPUs is that doing so is an order of magnitude cheaper, which wouldn't apply to custom designs.

 

[Blitzvogel]

http://www.arm.com/products/processors/licensees.php

No license listed for Google.

Doesn't mean they do not have researchers, consultants, etc who are evaluating ARM system architecture for Google's nefarious purposes.

It's too bad AMD hasn't gotten in bed with Google :awe:

 

[Virgorising]

AMD just so happen to have a semi custom chip business and arm server cpu ready to roll out in 2014. My money is this is amd behind this. It's freaking brilliant, instead of going toe to toe with Intel you offer a service Intel customers need at a fraction of the cost. Sure you wont be making 2-3k per server chip but you hurt the comptetition while bringing in revenue that previously wasnt there

Now that, which I din know.....really is brilliant. And what Capitalism is posed to B about.

 

[Virgorising]

Doesn't mean they do not have researchers, consultants, etc who are evaluating ARM system architecture for Google's nefarious purposes.

It's too bad AMD hasn't gotten in bed with Google :awe:

Maybe AMD jus don wanna get fleas.:whiste:

 

[Third_Eye]

http://www.arm.com/products/processors/licensees.php

No license listed for Google.

Not set in stone/complete. You will not see APPLE anywhere as the licensee.

Even missing from the Classic ARM Licensee section. Guess certain ppl have some privileges.

 

[Phynaz]

https://www.google.com/search?q=agnilux

Nice find.

 

[William Gaatjes]

I doubt that Google will start designing CPU's.
I do find it more likely that Google would contract a company that has the experience in designing CPU's and SOC's.
That is the shortest route to a functional design. Contracting a company that designs the chip on specifications provided by Google.
It does not make sense Google would go through all the hassle of making their own hardware from the chip up. Google is not a hardware/software company such as Apple and Microsoft are.

 

[William Gaatjes]

https://www.google.com/search?q=agnilux

Very interesting.

On a side note, the Google glasses, are they made by Google ?

 

[TuxDave]

Very interesting.

On a side note, the Google glasses, are they made by Google ?

lol, what an interesting business model.

1) Make a startup full of top engineering talent
2) Get bought out
3) Top engineering talent leaves to form another startup
4) Go to step 2

 

[positivedoppler]

You do see AMD in the list. Has AMD ever actually confirmed that they're doing their own ARM or is this just speculation? They've announced that they're using A57 in their upcoming server chips. Years ago they talked about using ARM and even then said that it wasn't a good choice until the 64-bit CPUs came out. They've also said that a big motivation for including ARM CPUs is that doing so is an order of magnitude cheaper, which wouldn't apply to custom designs.

Coincidentally the same day the Google ARM rumor started, AMD leaded more info on Seattle
http://www.fudzilla.com/home/item/33401-amd-sheds-light-on-arm-based-seattle-part

 

[William Gaatjes]

lol, what an interesting business model.

1) Make a startup full of top engineering talent
2) Get bought out
3) Top engineering talent leaves to form another startup
4) Go to step 2

:biggrin:

Seriously.

I was thinking that back in the amiga days, the amiga could run 68000 code but also 80386 x86 code with an extension board.
And that makes me think of the ARM little big chips.
But of course a mix of an ARM core together with an AMD x86 core.
Would that make sense for server applications ?


and

Google Glass = Google X.

 

[Imouto]

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-12-13/intel-seen-threatened-as-google-mulls-own-server-chips.html

 

[bullzz]

if google has any such plans, AMD wud be a cheap buy to get them a big start in what they want to do

 

[ShintaiDK]

if google has any such plans, AMD wud be a cheap buy to get them a big start in what they want to do

They would be anything but cheap. And no more x86 for AMD. Plus a GPU division that doesnt fit in either.

Plenty of other candidates to buy tho. But AMD would be about the worst they could possible buy.

 

[jpiniero]

if google has any such plans, AMD wud be a cheap buy to get them a big start in what they want to do

Google (or anyone actually) can't buy AMD directly because of the loss of the x86 license, and really the console deal. When the time comes for AMD to pay the $2B debt down, they could, say, sell the chip design business and SeaMicro to Google; and ATI to Apple; and then just coast on the console money.

 

[bullzz]

@ShintaiDK - according to the roumor, google is planning to build using ARM arch, not x86. so x86 support from AMD doesnt matter

and I am not sure what you mean by "a GPU division that doesnt fit in". if anything is going good for AMD, its their GPU division. google can take advantage of it
and for google, AMD will be cheap