Intel, AMD, and other PC titans join forces to fortify x86 CPUs

For years, both AMD and Intel have energetically competed against one another in the PC processor market. But there’s a new force to be reckoned with — Arm — and both AMD and Intel are circling the wagons.

On Tuesday, both AMD and Intel, along with Linux creator Linus Torvalds, Epic CEO Tim Sweeney, Microsoft, and a number of other companies, announced the X86 Ecosystem Advisory Group. The goal is to allow AMD and Intel to keep competing, while unifying certain aspects of the X86 architecture where customers are demanding a simplified approach.

Part of competition involves different approaches to a specific problem, such as creating a processor using tiled chiplets or a monolithic design. In general, a software developer can code for the X86 instruction set that both AMD and Intel share and not have to worry too much about specific implementations.

But there are exceptions — sometimes specific instructions that one vendor will use, for example. In a Forbes interview between PC analyst (and former AMD executive) Pat Moorhead, AMD CEO Dr. Lisa Su and Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger, Gelsinger commented that security models “haven’t done our ecosystem a favor,” and that could change.

The goal, the companies explained, was to craft a “more unified set of instructions and architectural interfaces,” the companies said. “This initiative will enhance compatibility, predictability and consistency across x86 product offerings.”

Both Su and Gelsinger pointed out that the two companies share technologies — USB, for example. AMD and Intel have also occasionally collaborated on products, too, such as the 8th-gen Core chips with an integrated AMD Radeon RX Vega graphics core.

Weirdly, the one topic you might expect the two to work on, a common AI interface, wasn’t mentioned. Both AMD and Intel use their own specific AI instructions, with an entirely different architecture.

“We are on the cusp of one of the most significant shifts in the x86 architecture and ecosystem in decades – with new levels of customization, compatibility and scalability needed to meet current and future customer needs,” Gelsinger said in a statement. “We proudly stand together with AMD and the founding members of this advisory group, as we ignite the future of compute, and we deeply appreciate the support of so many industry leaders.”

It’s hard not to see the formation of the X86 Ecosystem Advisory Group as a defensive measure. For years, the PC market was an exclusive x86 club, with Arm unable to gain a foothold. That changed over the past few years, and Qualcomm’s Snapdragon X Elite has convinced PC makers to adopt its power-sipping, performance-minded architecture. Arm is still a tiny minority in the PC market, but that’s not guaranteed.

The partnership, in fact, includes many enterprise companies. Specifically, the group will include Broadcom, Dell, Google., Hewlett-Packard Enterprise and HP, Lenovo, Microsoft, Oracle, and Red Hat, plus Torvalds, Sweeney, AMD and Intel.