Intel Confirms Development of 3D-Stacked Cache Technology for Processors

Kaarme

2023-09-20 09:49

It's not like Intel would have had a choice but to research this. Of course with Intel's financial resources, it's a small matter to developed a copy compatible with Intel's manufacturing processes. Considering Intel and Nvidia's vast wealth, I'm always more impressed when AMD, with its more meager funds, developes something first. But then again, AMD is also an old company in the semiconductors business, just like Intel, so it has other kinds of resources, even if its lacking money.

#6168808

TheDeeGee

2023-09-20 10:40

Kaarme:

It's not like Intel would have had a choice but to research this. Of course with Intel's financial resources, it's a small matter to developed a copy compatible with Intel's manufacturing processes. Considering Intel and Nvidia's vast wealth, I'm always more impressed when AMD, with its more meager funds, developes something first. But then again, AMD is also an old company in the semiconductors business, just like Intel, so it has other kinds of resources, even if its lacking money.

It's more like AMD has to do things first to keep their heads above the water.

#6168859

bnauk

2023-09-20 14:23

Wishing good luck to Intel working out how not to fry these poor little cache modules that will be pressed up against their space heater cores.

#6168896

schmidtbag

2023-09-20 15:45

TheDeeGee:

It's more like AMD has to do things first to keep their heads above the water.

Right now, AMD is more like knee-deep in water (at least in the server market), but they learned from Intel that you don't give your competition a chance to catch up. They're not doing as well in the desktop market, but that's also just not as popular or profitable of a market for them.

#6168930

Mufflore

2023-09-20 16:45

For the same process node, the higher the stack the harder it is to cool. Cache speed may need to be reduced to keep heat down on higher stacks. Cache has a law of diminishing returns as size increases anyway, this is another diminishing return on top. How a node shrink will affect this will be interesting too. ie the relationship between power use per unit area of cooling vs freq ... A cooling plate on the underside of the die joining with the upper side cooling could see a lot of gains if there is space to fit it. Side mounted chiplets perhaps?

#6168967

alanm

2023-09-20 18:05

Kaarme:

It's not like Intel would have had a choice but to research this. Of course with Intel's financial resources, it's a small matter to developed a copy compatible with Intel's manufacturing processes. Considering Intel and Nvidia's vast wealth, I'm always more impressed when AMD, with its more meager funds, developes something first. But then again, AMD is also an old company in the semiconductors business, just like Intel, so it has other kinds of resources, even if its lacking money.

Imagine where AMD would be if Jensen Huang never quit his job there as a chip designer.

#6168975

schmidtbag

2023-09-20 18:16

alanm:

Imagine where AMD would be if Jensen Huang never quit his job there as a chip designer.

Honestly, I think it was good he left. Management and bureaucracy would have got in his way, which I assume is why he started Nvidia in the first place. Meanwhile without the competition of Nvidia, ATI/AMD wouldn't have to try as hard. Granted, in a timeline without Nvidia, 3dfx and perhaps S3 would have still be around.

#6168978

tunejunky

2023-09-20 18:27

alanm:

Imagine where AMD would be if Jensen Huang never quit his job there as a chip designer.

good point but his cousin Lisa has less ego which allowed for the "outside the box" mcm revolution. Jensen would'nt have gone for it at the time, and chances are he never would've sold off GF to finance it. they both went with "clean slates" but Lisa has been far more effective at force multiplying far more limited resources.

#6168981

tunejunky

2023-09-20 18:37

schmidtbag:

Right now, AMD is more like knee-deep in water (at least in the server market), but they learned from Intel that you don't give your competition a chance to catch up. They're not doing as well in the desktop market, but that's also just not as popular or profitable of a market for them.

huge difference in markets. the server market has no brand loyalty once you show you can integrate legacy. they only care about real world differences and regulatory standards - with AMD having a double whammy over Intel on the latter with lower power consumption with more cores. the consumer market is nearly all about branding/marketing as only enthusiasts care about the actual differences. sometimes there's a breakthrough (i.e. Ryzen sales in Germany), but even that is media driven

#6168993

schmidtbag

2023-09-20 19:06

tunejunky:

huge difference in markets. the server market has no brand loyalty once you show you can integrate legacy. they only care about real world differences and regulatory standards - with AMD having a double whammy over Intel on the latter with lower power consumption with more cores. the consumer market is nearly all about branding/marketing as only enthusiasts care about the actual differences. sometimes there's a breakthrough (i.e. Ryzen sales in Germany), but even that is media driven

Not only that but AMD so far has fewer security issues and until recently, more/faster PCIe lanes.

#6169000

Kaarme

2023-09-20 19:14

alanm:

Imagine where AMD would be if Jensen Huang never quit his job there as a chip designer.

I feel like he wouldn't be what he is if he hadn't left. So, if he had stayed, he wouldn't have achieved nearly as much because he would be an entirely different person. So, to be Jensen Huang, he had to go and found Nvidia.

#6169062

H83

2023-09-20 22:19

TheDeeGee:

It's more like AMD has to do things first to keep their heads above the water.

AMD is the underdog, so it has to take risks/chances to win customers, while Intel and Nvidia can simply rely on their "names" in order to continue selling well, even if sometimes their products are worse.