Bending Metal: The Changing Server Business
Processors only make up ~20% of the cost of a server. We take a look at the business behind the rest of the bill of materials.
Processors only make up ~20% of the cost of a server. We take a look at the business behind the rest of the bill of materials.
Nvidia has immense momentum, but its position is not unassailable.
We need to stop thinking about Intel as a company seeking to recapture its past glory. Those days are over. Instead, we need to evaluate the company where it stands today. And on that metric it still has challenges, but also brings consdierable assets.
Recently de-cloaked start-up Playtron has creating a new OS targeted at portable gaming consoles that could be a critical bridge in brining more gamers into the market for PC-quality games.
The rise of AI compute is poised to reshape the economics of the data center. That may be as simple as Nvidia displacing Intel, but it could also lead to much wider, systematic change.
What does the proverbial Box Company need AI for right now? For non-technical companies is now the right time to invest in AI systems or is better to wait until the technology and ecosystem matures?
To stay competitive in leading edge semis fabs, companies need to generate roughly double the cost of a fab in revenue. By this math Intel is cutting it pretty closely. It also helps explains some of Samsung’s decisons.
HPE is acquiring Juniper in a deal that is hard to parse. Juniper has been stuck on a treadmill for so long, and its business model look fated to resemble HPE’s more and more. Better to jump then get pushed.
AT&T’s deal with Ericsson providers them with a big discount, but risks putting Ericsson in the driver’s seat for O-RAN, short circuiting the strategic leverage AT&T seeks with its “open” network. AT&T is playing checkers. Ericsson is playing 5D chess.
How will Intel’s sales team adjust to the company’s new accounting scheme? A lot rides on this seemingly small change in accounting.