AMD: The Improbable Rise of a Data Center Contender

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Let’s be clear: the current artificial intelligence landscape is dominated by a single entity, a sort of silicon overlord if you will: Nvidia. Their processors aren’t merely components; they’re the very thoughts of most of the planet’s data centers. And, naturally, their stock performance has been… well, let’s just say it’s been good. Astonishingly good, even. (One begins to suspect they’ve discovered a loophole in the laws of thermodynamics, or possibly just a very efficient accountant.)

Meanwhile, Advanced Micro Devices (AMD +0.04%) has been… elsewhere. Observing, perhaps. Contemplating the existential implications of increasingly intelligent toasters. (It’s a valid concern, really.) The point is, they haven’t exactly been at the forefront of the AI revolution. Their share price has reflected this, shall we say, relative obscurity.

But things, as they so often do, are beginning to shift. AMD appears to be gearing up for a rather significant push into the AI arena, and investors might, just might, want to pay attention. (Though, naturally, past performance is no guarantee of future results, especially when dealing with the unpredictable nature of sentient algorithms.)

AMD Finally Decides to Join the Party

Whispers of AMD’s increased AI ambitions first surfaced in November. CEO Lisa Su, in a statement that could have equally applied to a galactic conquest, declared that “AMD is entering a new era of growth fueled by our leadership technology roadmaps and accelerating AI momentum.” (One pictures a fleet of silicon spaceships, bravely venturing into the uncharted territories of machine learning.) Specifically, their so-called Helios platforms, powered by the Instinct series of GPUs, are intended to be the workhorses of this endeavor. The company anticipates a long-term AI revenue growth rate of around 80%. Analysts, in a fit of optimistic forecasting, suggest this could more than double their total revenue by 2028. (Of course, assuming the singularity doesn’t arrive first and render all financial projections utterly meaningless.)

At the CES event earlier this year, AMD reminded everyone that they hadn’t, in fact, been abducted by aliens and still intended to be a key player. They unveiled the Helios rack-scale tech, capable of handling up to 3 AI exaflops – that’s 3 quintillion operations per second, or roughly the number of times a cat blinks in a millennium. They also presented new Ryzen processors designed to imbue personal computers, automobiles, and industrial robots with a degree of artificial intelligence. (The robots, naturally, haven’t commented.)

A Gentle Reminder: Competition Exists

AMD is, admittedly, making a more concerted effort to penetrate the AI market. However, they’re not operating in a vacuum. Intel is also stepping up its game, and even companies traditionally uninvolved in chip manufacturing – like Alphabet and Amazon – are now designing their own AI processors. (It’s a bit like everyone suddenly deciding to build their own spaceships. Inefficient, perhaps, but undeniably ambitious.) The market won’t simply surrender market share to AMD. (Though, one can dream, can’t one?)

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Nevertheless, AMD is gaining traction. In the most recent quarter, their data center revenue (largely driven by AI) improved by 22% year over year, and that was before the arrival of their newer Instinct GPUs. Customers, it seems, were patiently waiting. Once the Instinct MI450 series, boasting up to 432 gigabytes of RAM operating at 19.6 terabytes per second, launches in late 2026, don’t be surprised to see that growth rate accelerate. (Assuming, of course, that the laws of physics remain cooperative.)

Perhaps the most intriguing aspect, for investors, is that, despite this potential, very little of it seems to be reflected in the current stock price. (It’s as if the market is collectively holding its breath, waiting for something truly extraordinary to happen. Which, let’s be honest, is entirely possible.)

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2026-01-21 00:54