For decades, Intel and AMD have been fierce rivals in the semiconductor industry. But in a rare move, the two x86 giants have joined forces to establish a new x86 Ecosystem Advisory Group — a collaborative effort aimed at ensuring the long-term unity, compatibility, and evolution of the x86 Instruction Set Architecture (ISA).
The announcement, made at the 2024 OCP Summit, attracted significant attention across the computing world.
The group’s founding members include major technology players such as Broadcom, Meta, Oracle, Microsoft, Dell, HPE, Lenovo, Google, and Red Hat — highlighting the broad industry support behind the initiative.
🧭 A Unified Vision for the Future of x86 #
First introduced 46 years ago, the x86 ISA has become the foundation of modern computing, dominating desktops, servers, and data centers worldwide.
However, in recent years, x86 has faced mounting competition from Arm and RISC-V architectures — especially as companies like Apple, Qualcomm, and AWS design custom Arm-based CPUs for PCs and cloud workloads.
To address these challenges, Intel and AMD are taking steps to standardize and modernize the x86 platform, reducing fragmentation and strengthening software compatibility.
Their goal is to ensure that developers and hardware partners can continue to rely on x86 as the preferred general-purpose computing platform.
🏗️ Goals of the x86 Ecosystem Advisory Group #
In a joint statement, both companies emphasized that the group’s mission is to expand the x86 ecosystem, simplify development, and improve cross-platform compatibility.
“We are facing one of the most significant shifts in the x86 architecture and ecosystem in decades,” said Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger.
“This collaboration will ensure x86 continues to scale, adapt, and deliver innovation for the next generation of computing.”
AMD Chair and CEO Dr. Lisa Su added:
“The formation of this Advisory Group ensures the x86 architecture evolves to meet the needs of developers and customers worldwide.”
The group aims to:
- Unify architectural guidance across Intel and AMD CPUs.
- Simplify software and hardware integration for faster adoption of new features.
- Enhance compatibility across x86 platforms, allowing customers to choose hardware freely.
- Streamline the inclusion of new extensions, especially for AI and parallel workloads.
🔧 Modernizing the ISA — From Legacy Cleanup to AI Extensions #
While details are still being finalized, several areas for collaboration have already been identified:
- AMD’s Supervisor Entry Extensions: Designed to clean up legacy instruction handling.
- Intel’s FRED (Flexible Return and Event Delivery): Another effort to modernize low-level exception and interrupt behavior.
- Intel’s x86S Initiative: A proposal for a pure 64-bit x86 environment that simplifies the architecture by removing obsolete 16-bit and 32-bit modes.
- AI-Focused Extensions: Such as Intel’s AMX (Advanced Matrix Extensions), which accelerate matrix operations crucial for AI inference.
Together, these efforts mark a step toward streamlining and unifying the evolution of the x86 ISA, reducing fragmentation while maintaining backward compatibility — one of x86’s biggest strengths.
⚙️ Industry Context — Rising Arm and RISC-V Pressure #
The collaboration also comes at a time when Arm and RISC-V architectures are gaining ground.
Companies like Apple, AWS, Google, and Microsoft are designing their own Arm-based chips for performance, energy efficiency, and vertical integration.
Meanwhile, MediaTek and NVIDIA have announced partnerships to bring Arm CPUs to Windows PCs — a direct challenge to x86’s dominance.
To stay competitive, both Intel and AMD have launched energy-efficient, high-core-density CPUs:
- AMD’s EPYC “Bergamo” (Zen 4c) optimized for cloud scalability.
- Intel’s Xeon 6 E-core series focused on performance-per-watt efficiency.
These parallel efforts, combined with the new advisory group, reflect a broader strategy — collaborate on standards, compete on execution.
🧩 Expected Outcomes #
The x86 Ecosystem Advisory Group is expected to deliver:
- Enhanced cross-vendor compatibility across x86 products.
- Simplified developer experience with clearer architectural documentation.
- Stronger industry alignment around emerging technologies such as AI, security, and virtualization.
- Faster integration of new hardware features into operating systems and frameworks.
Although immediate results may take time — given the long design cycles of modern CPUs — the formation of this group is a crucial strategic step toward ensuring x86 remains relevant for decades to come.
🏁 A Positive Step Forward #
Intel and AMD’s partnership marks a historic milestone — an acknowledgment that cooperation is essential to preserve the vitality of the x86 platform in an era of architectural diversification.
Just as earlier collaborations led to the creation of PCIe, ACPI, and USB, this new alliance may well define the next generation of computing standards.
In short, while Intel and AMD will continue to compete fiercely, the x86 Ecosystem Advisory Group is a welcome move toward a more open, unified, and resilient x86 ecosystem — one that continues to shape the future of computing.