AMD Opens Israeli R&D Center, Hints At ARM Link 95
siliconbits writes "We've learnt that AMD will open a new research and development center in Israel in the Tel-Aviv area, one which will be built around Graphic Remedy, the small startup they purchased in September 2010 and which specialises in development tools for heterogeneous computing and 3D graphics. Although the chip company hasn't published any press releases yet, the news is a clear indication that AMD sees its future (and its survival) in a more fragmented market where x86 is no longer the dominating platform."
Re:Israel has a lot more high tech than you expect (Score:1, Insightful)
I don't think anyone thinks of Israel a Middle Eastern wasteland. They think of it as a self-perpetuating military enterprise. The high-tech industry in Israel has formed as an addendum to the that military industry. All those missiles and guidance systems need microchips and IT support you know.
Re:Yuck (Score:5, Insightful)
So you're fine buying from tech companies with Chinese factories (ie. pretty much all of them) but an Israeli R&D lab is unacceptable? I don't see the distinction.
Don't kid youself. None of those silicon-holding boxes you own were knitted by unicorns from a child's laughter.
Re:Israel has a lot more high tech than you expect (Score:1, Insightful)
Because the restoration of the Jewish state of Israel is a prerequisite for the biblical apocalypse. And propping up Israel plays into the fevered dreams of the omnicidal fundamentalist christian death cult that makes up a significant minority of the the American voting public.
Re:Yuck (Score:3, Insightful)
Maybe if a person considers Collective Punishment worse than low wages and unsafe working conditions it make sense. The latter seems pretty bad, but the former is a war crime.
Personally it all sounds pretty bad, and the other sides in the Isaeli-Arab conflicts aren't any better. I wish we could do without all of them.
Re:Israel research talent (Score:4, Insightful)
You're going to "shun" AMD products because they now have R&D facilities in Israel? If you avoided every product developed in Israel, you'd have almost nothing to "compute" with. It's not just semiconductor companies either -- Microsoft and Google have large setups in Israel as well. Facebook bought Snaptu [techcrunch.com] a few months ago.
The Israeli economy is built around the tech sector.
Oh, and I'm Israeli, so don't forget to post some charming apartheid reply to this comment.