AMD to build second global center in Beijing

AMD China, the wholly-owned holding subsidiary of the world's leading chip maker Advanced Micro Devices, Inc (AMD), signed a memorandum with the Beijing municipal government Oct 12.

It is expected that AMD will make plans during the next few years to establish its second global center in Beijing to support the US headquarters and drive local information industry growth.

"The new global center represents AMD's growing responsibility to China. AMD will continue with its commitment to growing together with the nation," said Bruce Claflin, AMD board chairman.

According to the memorandum, AMD China will strengthen cooperation with IT partners in Beijing to help them improve their innovation capabilities and global competitiveness.

AMD China will partner with original-equipment manufacturing (OEM) enterprises to participate in major information construction programs in Beijing, contributing to the city's international metropolitan development strategy. The programs center on triple-network convergence, supercomputer center, data center and the internet of things. The Beijing government will provide policy support as required.

Support for new industry

Zhongguancun, known as China's Silicon Valley, is building a demonstration area for new industries, including cloud computing and the internet of things. "Our cooperation will provide a great platform for high-tech companies," said Guo Hong, director of the Admin Committee of Zhongguancun.

In 2005, AMD set up its Greater China head office in Zhongguancun, Beijing. As the first global leader in the semiconductor industry, it triggered an influx of the world's best technologies and innovation resources to Beijing.

As the company prospered, AMD spared no efforts in bolstering high-tech industries in China. From the free transfer of its low power x86 microprocessor core technology to strong support in the creation of Dawning 4000A and 5000A - two supercomputers capable of 10 and 100 teraflops peak performance a second, respectively - AMD helped make China a superpower in computing.

The company also contributed to building local education systems and recruiting high-tech talent, partnering with Lenovo and Founder to develop competitive products.

"It is apparent that China will continue to be one of our largest markets and home to a great number of employees. We have already achieved strong success in this market, and to demonstrate our commitment to continued growth and support of this region, it is natural that we plan to establish over time a second global center in Beijing to support our US headquarters," said Karen Guo, AMD senior vice-president and president of Greater China.

AMD is an innovative technology company dedicated to collaborating with customers and technology partners to ignite the next generation of computing and graphics solutions at work, home and play.

The company now has a research and development (R&D) center in Shanghai, the company's largest R&D center outside the US, and a leading TMP (test, mark and pack) facility in Suzhou, Jiangsu province.

Source:China Daily