Web 2.0: Liveblogging Intel’s CEO
Paul Otellini is onstage at 8:30 am at the Web 2.0 conference in San Francisco today, in a conversation with host John Battelle.
The conversation is too fast for me to type along with, so I’m going to paraphrase him.
On the stimulus package: He’s not happy with where a lot of the money went. Swimming pools in Biloxi, etc. By contrast, he says, China’s government rolled out a stimulus package that he thinks was much better… Continue Reading
Next-generation netbooks’ killer feature: 3G Internet
A panelist of management and marketing execs who work on netbooks tried to explain the exciting new future of the tiny laptops this morning at GigaOM’s Mobilize 09 conference in San Francisco.
Unfortunately, the panel quickly turned into a discussion of under-the-hood components I could’ve gotten from PC World. But for the first few minutes, there was real vision onstage.
“People are buying [netbooks] as PC companion devices,” said Don Paterson, a director of marketing from Microsoft’s… Continue Reading
Google unravels Wintel: The crack in Microsoft’s armor makes Intel vulnerable
Google thinks it can use the web and all of its efficiencies to challenge Microsoft. Now, it turns out that the crack in Microsoft’s armor will also make Intel vulnerable, threatening to unravel the Wintel duopoly that has dominated computing since the 1980s.
Tonight, Google announced that Chrome OS, its new operating system, will run on computers with either x86-based or ARM-based chips. No longer will Intel have the monopoly on chips that are at the… Continue Reading
Video: Intel’s bullshit filter exposes disputed information on the Internet
Intel’s researchers have figured out how to expose lies on the Internet. They’ve launched a tool dubbed Dispute Finder that lets you see highlighted text in a news story where the information is disputed. I call it a bullshit filter.
Working with researchers at the University of California at Berkeley, Intel Labs created an open source plug-in for the Firefox web browser that will automatically highlight text that other web users have reported as inaccurate or… Continue Reading
Intel Labs prototypes virtual world for scientists
Intel is showing off a number of cool research projects today at its research day event in Santa Clara, Calif. But the coolest of all is a project called ScienceSim, which is an effort to create interconnected 3-D virtual worlds that scientists can use for experiments.
The worlds will be able to connect to each other as needed, says Intel chief technology officer Justin Rattner.
The company will debut the effort, in concert with university researchers, at… Continue Reading
Graphics chip rivals race to deliver next-generation chips
The next-generation of graphics chips is due to arrive in PCs sometime this year. Both Nvidia and Advanced Micro Devices are expected to deliver these chips for the personal computer market this year, but no one knows exactly when.
This change is so important that, depending on which way the rumors swing, it’s bound to drive the stock prices of the rivals involved either up or down through the rest of the year. Because the companies… Continue Reading
Intel to buy software maker Wind River Systems for $884 million
Intel said today it will buy Wind River Systems, a company that lets wireless carriers and cell phone makers build software that’s embedded into phones, for $884 million.
The move is part of Intel’s effort to establish its lightweight microprocessors such as the Atom chip and underscores that Intel is making a big push into software for managing devices such as smart phones, mobile Internet devices, car entertainment systems and other gadgets for which Wind River… Continue Reading
Intel wants to bring ultra-thin laptops to the masses
Intel’s Uday Marty said today that a new Intel processor will bring a different kind of laptop to the mainstream — ultra-thin laptops that fall somewhere between your standard laptop and low-end netbooks.
Why is Intel making a big deal about this now? The company has actually been using the politically incorrect “thin is in” tagline to describe its efforts for a while. But Marty, who directs product marketing for Intel’s mobile platforms group, said a… Continue Reading
Nvidia trumpets success of its Tegra cell phone processors
Nvidia is becoming a real player in portable mobile devices as the industry embraces its Tegra processors. The company is announcing today that some of the world’s biggest gadget manufacturers are designing mobile devices using the Tegra chips.
And the interesting thing is, the first major adopters of these chips for mobile Internet devices, or MIDS, are expected to be cell phone carriers, not the computer makers who are Nvidia’s traditional customers.
At the Computex show in… Continue Reading
PC game software grew 18 percent in 2008, with China taking the lead
PC game software grew 18 percent in 2008, thanks to growing usage of online games that are played primarily on computers and not on consoles.
The PC Gaming Alliance is one of those groups that insist PC gaming is not dying. If you look at U.S. retail game sales, it certainly looks like it is. But much of the growth is in online sales and new kinds of business models that aren’t easy to measure.
In 2009,… Continue Reading
Intel’s coming processors to attack high end of server chip market
Intel said today that a new Xeon series server chip debuting in the second half of the year will attack the highest end of the server processor market. That means Intel is targeting IBM as well as another division of Intel that sells the Itanium processors.
The code-named Nehalem-EX processor will launch in the second half of the year and appear in computer servers in early 2010. The chip extends the Nehalem-EP processor that launched in… Continue Reading
Roundup: Facebook snares more funding? Craigslist wins injunction, eBay beats L’Oreal
Here’s the latest action:
From Russia With Love– Digital Sky Technologies, a Russian investor, is offering to put more money into Facebook, raising its valuation to $10 billion, according to the Wall Street Journal. [We've since confirmed.]
Court backs Craigslist in South Carolina injunction — A federal judge blocked the state’s attorney general from filing criminal charges against Craigslist related to prostitution charges.
Cartier files, then withdraws lawsuit over iPhone apps – The jewelry maker alleged trademark theft, but… Continue Reading
Craig Barrett bows out with wisecracks at his last Intel annual meeting
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Bringing an era in Intel history and a storied career in the chip industry to a close, Craig Barrett (above) retired as chairman of Intel today at the company’s annual meeting in Santa Clara, Calif.
The 69-year-old spent 35 years at the company and rose in the manufacturing ranks under the leadership of Intel leaders Robert Noyce, Gordon Moore, and Andy Grove. Barrett succeeded Grove as chief executive of the world’s biggest chip maker in 1998… Continue Reading
Intel readies second-generation Atom processor for next-generation, laptop-like netbooks
Intel announced today it has designed a faster and more power-efficient version of its Atom microprocessor, which in the past year has revolutionized computing in the netbook market.
The netbook market has exploded in the past year as consumers opt for the convenient size (smaller than laptop), simple features of surfing the web and reading email, and costs of $500 or less. Intel has sold tens of millions of Atom processors in the past year. It… Continue Reading
Intel’s chief executive speaks out against $1.45 billion fine for antitrust violations
In a sign that Intel’s regulatory troubles are just beginning, the European Commission slapped Intel with a record antitrust fine of $1.45 billion today for allegedly abusing its monopoly power in competition with Advanced Micro Devices .
The EU specifically said that Intel gave hidden rebates to computer makers on condition they bought only from Intel, that Intel made payments to major retailer Media Saturn on condition it was an Intel exclusive, and otherwise interfered directly… Continue Reading
Reversing a five-quarter trend, AMD regains market share against Intel
Changes in quarterly market share for PC microprocessors don’t usually raise our eyebrows. But the first quarter results from market researcher IDC are interesting because Advanced Micro Devices has finally reversed five quarters worth of market share losses to Intel .
While the market share change is small, it can add up to a lot of dollars. AMD hit 25 percent market share a few years ago during the heyday of its Opteron server chips. It… Continue Reading
Roundup: Twitter’s inventor readies next big thing, Verizon supports texting bans, and more
Here’s the latest action:
Twitter co-founder to launch iphone payment service — The project, code-named Squirrel, will allow your iPhone to take credit card payments (though it won’t be the first service to do this), TechCrunch’s MG Siegler reports.
Verizon will support bans on text messaging while driving — One such law recently took effect in California.
European Commission fine against Intel expected Wednesday — IDG calls the case, which has been under investigation since 2000, “one of the most significant… Continue Reading
Exit interview: Retiring Intel chairman Craig Barrett on the industry’s unfinished business
Intel chairman Craig Barrett is retiring on May 20. Now 69, he spent more than 35 years at the company and deserves much credit for building it into a manufacturing powerhouse and the world’s biggest chip maker. He succeeded Andy Grove as chief executive in 1998 and passed the CEO job on to Paul Otellini in 2005. As chairman for the past four years, he has traveled the world meeting with heads of state about… Continue Reading
Roundup: VC investments plunge in Q1, Cisco sees sales stabilize, Facebook on Digg and more
Here’s the latest action:
Slowdown hits venture industry worldwide in first quarter — The venture capital industry sank 50 percent in the U.S., but the drop was mirrored in places such as Europe, Israel, China and India. Overseas, venture-backed companies raised $1.87 billion in 250 deals, compared with $3.65 billion in 430 deals a year ago, according to VentureSource. The first-quarter numbers also were down significantly from the fourth quarter of 2008, when investors committed $2.88… Continue Reading
Roundup: Intel ads, Apple-Twitter rumors, and more
Here’s the latest action:
Microsoft begins contest for applications that use its Azure services platform — More here.
Intel launches yet another branding campaign — More here.
There was some crazy rumor about Apple looking at buying Twitter — More details on Techmeme.
AT&T offers app for monitoring iPhone usage — Here.
Mobile ad growth slows, but expected to pick up again — This year, U.S. advertisers are expected to spend $229 million on mobile ads, up 26 percent from $169 million last year, according… Continue Reading