Intel Developer Forum: Chip To The Web

Intel
Developer Forum: Chip To The Web

The
next challenge for Intel is to reach the 'outside' world of
a billion connected computers, millions of servers and trillions
of ecommerce dollars.

Computer.
The word reminds us of grayish-white rectan- gular pieces
of CPU, monitor, keyboard, and relentless amount of typing
and patience-testing start-up time. But imagine a computer
that boots up instantly with a remote control just like the
TV does. One that recognizes your voice and talks' to you,
obeys all your spoken commands-drafting a letter, slicing
and dicing data, projecting data on a pie-chart, animating
a cartoon caricature or taking print-outs. Interestingly,
while doing all this, the system might resemble a bunch of
multi-colored flowers on the table or a fancy tape recorder.
This is the future 'easy PC.' This is where imagination meets
reality. At least, this is how the microprocessor giant Intel
aims to make 'PCs that just work'. Sure enough the six models
on display at the Intel Showcase were enough proof of this.

In the
recently held Intel Developer Forum (IDF) in Taipei, Taiwan,
for the Asia Pacific (AP) region, Intel outlined its game
plans for the future PC and the internet-both of which are
strategic plans to increase PC usage and standardize the Intel
platform for the 'connected PCs' of tomorrow. Intel wants
to step outside its hardware limits and add more software
into the chips to make internet ready PCs. The accent is on
making PCs with the four Ss-speed, speech, security and style.
With 'Intel Inside' campaign being a big hit, the challenge
and the strategy ahead is to reach Intel outside 'the world
of the billion connected trusted computers, millions of servers
and trillions of e-commerce dollar transactions.' Amidst flashing
cameras and a 100-strong local and foreign press group, CEO
Craig Barrett opened his talk with the

Intel
Vision, to the 750 Intel developers from the AP region. And
he spoke of the mission he has set for himself and his company-to
be the number one computer platform everywhere on the internet.
The focus is on taking a significant share of the billion
connected PCs, millions of servers and trillions of ecommerce
transactions and use the Intel architecture to build One Virtual
Network. Just as Intel created the 'brains' of the PCs with
its microprocessors about two decades ago, now it wants to
extend 'veins' for the Net. A change in the business model
being brought about by the declining PC sales in the developed
markets and the way internet is driving all businesses. For
instance, look at the home segment. Earlier people with computers
at home, started using internet.

Now the
ISPs in the US are offering a free PC with every internet
subscription for a three month period! No wonder that Intel
is focusing all its energy and investment in the net horizon.
The ambitious internet strategy is to set up huge server farms
in different countries to host internet services. "We plan
to apply Intel's experience to provide a family of hosting
services, like web-hosting ecommerce services to large corporations
and companies," said Barrett. What the company aims to do
is to act as the back-end for portals, ISPs and corporations,
where Intel servers will be connected to the internet. The
idea is to segregate the market into desktop, workstation,
servers and mobile products to cater to all the requirements
of the net. The announcements made by Barrett and his crew
who came from the US for the event, were in line with the
internet strategy of the company. The effort and the impact,
at the three day event, was to make Intel synonymous with
Internet.

Applauding
Taiwan's evolution as a global leader in the design, manufacture
and supply of internet platforms and solutions, in his key
note address, Craig Barrett, spoke of the Asian regions' role
in the networked world as a manufacturing hub and an innovation
center. With a staggering PC sales and a saturated US market,
Intel's next opportunity for its existing business and contributions
to its future business for a futuristic computing world, will
come from the Asian region. Hence the importance.

The company's
mission, as declared at the IDF Taiwan is to promote development
in Asia as the world's manufacturing hub. Barrett spoke of
increased opportunities in assembly and testing of advanced
microprocessors, particularly for the mobile segment, computer
and networking boards, communications and memory products
in the AP region. Intel, internet and Asia Although the much-awaited
announcement of a manufacturing factory in the Asian region
was not made, Barrett spoke of the $3 billion investment earmarked
for the year 1999 toward making it a manufacturing hub of
the world. Identifying the strengths and contributions of
countries in the AP region, Barrett listed out opportunities
that lay ahead for several countries in the region. While
countries such as China and India are significant markets
for PC sales, with each of the markets having less than 1%
of its huge population, Intel is also looking at these two
countries as major contributors for internet solutions including
multimedia or content development for the internet.

Manufacturing
will continue to be the strength of Taiwan, Korea and China,
while Japan would play a unique role in 'styling' products,
he observed. Among all the six future PC models styled by
Japanese designers showcased in the IDF, the most popular
one was the 'Ekbhana' model resembling a flower arrangement.
Some of the recent investments Intel has made in the AP region
include setting up a design center in Penang, Malaysia; an
architecture development lab in Shanghai, China; an applied
research center in Beijing, China; and a technology center
in Bangalore. All this is undoubtedly indicative of the significance
of APAC's role in the years to come. The second commitment
that Intel has made to the region is to make AP an innovation
center of IT through venture capital funding activities. The
company has tied up with companies such as Red Hat, Rediff-on-the-Net,
and is for small, start-up companies with innovative ideas.
Yet another initiative for growth and development of the region
is through investments and technology sharing in the education
segment.

During
this visit, Barrett announced the establishment of two server
and workstation design laboratories at National Taiwan University
and National China Tung University. In all, the effort and
the impact was to present Intel as synonymous with internet
in the three day conference and get developers to tune themselves
to Intel's new target-the internet.

AKILA
SUBRAMANIAM

in Taipei,Taiwan