Intel chief executive officer Craig Barrett has outlined
the company’s convergence roadmap to deliver technology merging
computing and communications, at the Intel Developer Forum in San
Francisco.
"We have used Moore's Law to drive the convergence of computing
and communications," Barrett told attendees.
"Intel's commitment to Moore's Law now allows us to create
integrated platforms that deliver a broad range of capabilities for
individuals and organisations that use technology."
Moore’s law was proffered by Intel’s Gordon Moore 40 years ago
and identified the ability to double the number of transistors in
the same silicon area every two years. Intel is now trying to keep
the law alive by offering technology like multi-core processors and
other platform innovations, said Barrett, in order to squeeze
greater performance from the processor.
Developers would play a key role in making sure that multi-core
solutions kept Moore's Law going. Barrett said, "We will continue
to innovate at the transistor and individual chip level, but now
our job is to work with the extended eco-system of developers,
software designers, systems engineers, service providers and others
to innovate at the platform level.”
He said, “Multi-core technology represents a tremendous
opportunity for the developer community. It provides the foundation
for almost limitless innovation and creativity in addressing the
changing ways people want to use computing and communications
devices."
Intel is also gearing itself up to manufacture an increased
number of components to cut the price of producing these new
platforms, which will follow in the footsteps of processors like
Intel’s Centrino mobile wireless for laptops.
Going forward, Intel is developing Intel Hyper-Threading,
LaGrande security features, and virtualisation abilities to allow
users to run different operating systems on the same hardware
platform.
Barrett also highlighted new Intel I/O (input/output)
acceleration technology, designed to improve communication between
networked servers and applications for handling the overwhelming
demands of applications, such as Web commerce, messaging, storage
and server clustering.
Intel is to announce plans to produce chips for the forthcoming
WiMAX fixed wireless broadband technology.