• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

The heiress of $10 billion Perdue Farms and the $12 billion Sheraton Hotels empire wore hand-me-downs, still rides the subway, and flies economy

2

Iran's president admits 'we have many problems' and missiles 'are of no use' as the U.S. chokes its economy while weakening Tehran's grip on Hormuz

3

31-year-old millionaire has zero sympathy for unemployed Gen Z's ‘excuses’—he says 'it is scarily easy' to build a business and get rich right now

1

The heiress of $10 billion Perdue Farms and the $12 billion Sheraton Hotels empire wore hand-me-downs, still rides the subway, and flies economy

2

Iran's president admits 'we have many problems' and missiles 'are of no use' as the U.S. chokes its economy while weakening Tehran's grip on Hormuz

3

31-year-old millionaire has zero sympathy for unemployed Gen Z's ‘excuses’—he says 'it is scarily easy' to build a business and get rich right now
Tech

Why Alibaba Picked AMD For New Cloud Server Chips

By
Aaron Pressman
Aaron Pressman
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Aaron Pressman
Aaron Pressman
Down Arrow Button Icon
October 14, 2016, 8:51 AM ET
US-CHINA-ECONOMY-ALIBABA-IPO
Photograph by Jewel Samad — AFP
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba has agreed to use graphics processing chips from Advanced Micro Devices in servers that power its cloud computing services.

The win for AMD comes as the once-struggling chipmaker is on the comeback trail with new chips to compete with Intel and Nvidia. Shares of AMD, which have skyrocketed 126% this year, gained 5% in pre-market trading on Friday.

Alibaba (BABA) will use AMD’s Radeon Pro chips to expand its cloud offerings, AMD said in a release. Though Alibaba’s main focus has been on e-commerce, the company is diversifying. Its cloud subsidiary competes with Amazon Web Services, the Microsoft Azure operation, and many others in the market to offer online storage and software services to corporate customers.

Get Data Sheet, Fortune’s technology newsletter.

Although Intel (INTC) still dominates the market for chips to power servers in massive cloud data centers, AMD (AMD) and Nvidia (NVDA) are making gains by repurposing graphics processing chips. Once used mainly to power video games and architectural software, graphics chips excel at handling many simple but simultaneous calculations, a trait which is also useful for the kinds of tasks performed by cloud servers.

AMD CEO Lisa Su, an electrical engineer and chip designer who took over the top job two years ago, continues to execute on her plan to revive a company that had been all but obliterated by its larger competitors. Key gains in graphics and video gaming console chips have boosted AMD’s results as well as a savvy deal to license server chip designs in China.

The company’s share price hit bottom at $1.83 in February. In early trading on Friday at $6.80, the shares have nearly quadrupled since that time.

About the Author
By Aaron Pressman
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

Latest in Tech


Most Popular

Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • TikTok icon
  • YouTube icon

    Latest in Tech


    Most Popular

    © 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
    FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.