AMD has just announced the acquisition of Xilinx for $35 billion . This makes AMD a leader in the FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array) and HPC (High-Performance Computing) markets. The acquisition was a stock purchase valued at $35 billion. AMD CEO Lisa Su confirmed that this purchase will allow AMD to strengthen its position, particularly in the HPC and FPGA sectors, propelling it ahead of Intel and Nvidia in these areas. This acquisition will expand the customer base of both AMD and Xilinx and allow the two companies to work on a broader range of products by combining their respective skills and expertise.
FPGAs are programmable components that accelerate certain computational processes. These FPGAs can be reused indefinitely across different algorithms. The latest generations of FPGAs can be reprogrammed in a tenth of a second. This eliminates the need to contact the manufacturer every time a modification or improvement is required.
What does this purchase mean?
Following this acquisition, AMD is no longer limited to producing traditional CPUs and GPUs but will be able to manufacture programmable integrated circuits and high-speed processing chips. AMD is thus responding to Intel's acquisition of Altera, a semiconductor manufacturing company, and to Nvidia's acquisition of Mellanox, a networking and server specialist. AMD is therefore positioning itself as a leader in various sectors utilizing GPUs , CPUs, and FPGAs. AMD will also offer related products and services such as cloud computing and advanced IT solutions.
Lisa Su states that this acquisition will propel AMD to the forefront of the computer chip market. AMD is targeting a gain of nearly $300 million within 18 months of the acquisition closing. Upon completion of the purchase, Xilinx shareholders will own 26% of the combined shares, while AMD shareholders will own 74%.
What are the next steps?
Victor Peng, CEO of Xilinx, expressed his delight at joining the AMD family. This acquisition by AMD allows Xilinx to further advance in its core areas of expertise, such as the data center and cloud computing sectors. It also enables the company to reach more customers for its key products, including FPGAs SmartNIC solutions , HPC , and adaptive SoCs , and to expand its market reach even further.
This transaction is subject to approval by the shareholders of both companies and the usual regulatory bodies for this type of acquisition. The purchase has already been approved by the boards of directors of both companies (AMD and Xilinx). If all goes according to plan, the acquisition will close towards the end of 2021. Lisa Su will become CEO of both groups, and Victor Peng will be President in charge of Xilinx's business and strategic growth initiatives. He will also join AMD's Board of Directors.
This acquisition allows AMD to offer its customers better products and solutions in the field of cutting-edge technology. The competition is expected to be fierce, and its two main rivals, Intel and Nvidia, will not stand idly by.
