Nepedia
Back to Discover
Fluent Reader
💻

AMD

technology Maturity 9-11 war conflict Next article →

This article covers sensitive topics: war_conflict. Parents can manage visibility in Parental Controls.

AMD is a large American company that makes tiny parts for computers. These parts are called semiconductors.

AMD Logo
AMD Logo

The company makes many different things. They create central processing units, or CPUs, which act like brains for computers. They also make graphics processing units, known as GPUs, to help show pictures and games.

AMDRadeonMemory
AMDRadeonMemory

AMD makes parts for many places. You can find their chips in personal computers, laptops, and gaming consoles. They also make parts for large data centers and embedded systems. This work helps many different kinds of machines run smoothly.

Making these chips is a very careful way of working. AMD makes microprocessors, which are the parts that handle instructions. They also make chipsets that connect parts on a motherboard.

Amd 386 processor
Amd 386 processor

In the past, AMD made all its own chips in its own factories. However, they changed how they work in 2009. After a part of the company called GlobalFoundries was spun off, AMD began to outsource its manufacturing. This means other companies now make the chips for them. In 2022, they also bought a company called Xilinx to make field-programmable gate arrays, or FPGAs. These are special chips that can be programmed for different jobs.

Jerry Sanders started AMD on May 1, 1969.

1amdplace
1amdplace

He worked with seven other technology professionals from a company called Fairchild Semiconductor. They wanted more freedom to create new things. In the beginning, AMD made memory chips and other small parts. By 1975, they started making microprocessors to compete with a company called Intel. This started a long rivalry between the two businesses. In 1979, AMD began showing its success by debuting on the New York Stock Exchange. They also started building a large factory in Austin, Texas.

AMD has many important facts in its history. In 1969, the company moved to a new headquarters in Sunnyvale, California. This building was 15,000 square feet and cost $500,000. By 1971, AMD's total sales reached $4.6 million for the year. In 1978, their sales grew to over $100 million.

AMD Austin campus
AMD Austin campus

A big moment happened in 1981 when IBM created its personal computer. IBM wanted Intel chips, but they also required a second company to make them. This led to a ten-year deal between Intel and AMD. This agreement allowed AMD to manufacture certain Intel chips. This helped AMD grow very quickly in the computer market.

Today, you can see the results of AMD's work in many places. Their technology is inside the gaming consoles you play on. It is also used in the servers that run the internet.

Nokia-9110-4
Nokia-9110-4

Some people even see the AMD logo on things like racing car spoilers.

MichaelSchumacherHO2005
MichaelSchumacherHO2005

In the late 2010s, AMD became very competitive again. They used their Ryzen processors to win back many customers. Their processors were fast and had good prices. In 2022, AMD reached a huge milestone. For the first time, AMD's total value was higher than Intel's market capitalization.

488 words

Where will your curiosity go next?

Keep exploring at your chosen reading level.

🖼️ Images & Media (8)
File:AMD Logo.svg
AMD Logo.svg
File:1amdplace.jpg
1amdplace.jpg
File:AMDmarkham4.jpg
AMDmarkham4.jpg
File:AMD Austin campus.JPG
AMD Austin campus.JPG
File:Nokia-9110-4.jpg
Nokia-9110-4.jpg
File:AMDRadeonMemory.JPG
AMDRadeonMemory.JPG
File:Amd 386 processor.jpg
Amd 386 processor.jpg
File:MichaelSchumacherHO2005.jpg
MichaelSchumacherHO2005.jpg
More to explore

🔬 Go deeper

More advanced topics to explore

🪜 Step back

Simpler topics to build understanding

What is Nepedia?

A free, ad-free encyclopedia for children. Every article is written at five reading levels, so the same page works for a five-year-old and a fifteen-year-old — use the level switcher above to see this one change. No account needed to read.