Paul Otellini keynote at Day 2 of Web 2.0. Paul gives a speech to web 2.0 crowd while the Intel stock is crashing or should I say all stocks are crashing. What does this mean for future innovation from Intel?
Video below…
Intel and Yahoo announced a partnership (also with Comcast) that they will be providing the embedded technology for set top boxes to provide widget for a TV environment. I’m here at IDF and had a chance to talk to a few Intel super geeks and basically it’s all vapor at the moment. It’s mainly a developer oriented showcase so it’s not meant to be a shipping product. The demo they are showing is very sexy but it’s vapor - at least for now.
The demo really shows the benefit of the user experience. The notion of having prefabricated widgets coming from Yahoo will make for a compelling experience. What’s more interesting is the idea that users or families will be able to create their own widgets. I can see this really working well for parents putting together microcontent widgets for their kids - a kinda set top box playlist concept.
So as of today it’s concept and this offering should attract developers with the open architecture. The Intel guy said that developers can integrate any clients side innovation directly into the stack. This makes sense for emerging areas that need innovation - like video acceleration and other problem areas like managing the storage issues. Today big video content providers have to to store multiple file formats like Flash, Windows, and Silverlight. This is a big problem and generates a ton of costs. At least the CDNs can make more money.
I love this concept with the Intel set top box and think that this is where Yahoo needs to be successful. By pushing out content from their system to the edge the users are happy. Yahoo goes to where the users are instead of today where Yahoo makes the users come to them.
The question in my mind is what is the video user experience like when there are so many problems in delivering video over the Internet (speed, cost, concurrency).
Last week Facebook and Intel released a joint announcement where Intel will provide “thousands” of high performance yet energy efficient servers. From the press release:
Facebook and Intel have signed a collaboration agreement that focuses on technology evaluation, benchmarking and optimization of software for Intel architecture. Intel will work to address Facebook’s processing needs through assessment of various chipset and server platform configurations, delivery of the most energy efficient processors and allocation of software engineering to evaluate ways to harness the optimal performance from Facebook’s servers.
When I heard this I knew it sounded oddly familar, almost recycled. Last year Intel started making custom hardware for Google (again). I always thought this was a special deal for god… I mean Google. (note the capitalization, yes Google has overtaken god in day-to-day importance), however apparently Intel has a dedicated white box division for custom projects. Anyone with deep pockets can order up a custom solution and commission any R&D around it. The Register sheds a little light on the operation:
The chip maker crafts a few different types of systems and will ship them to interested parties… On the Google front, Intel went out of its way to steal such business. It produced a bespoke server line full of low-power, low-cost components that matched Google’s demanding specifications.
According to a CNet blog cited in the same article, “Intel’s server gurus ‘have been maniacal as we designed a unique board for them, developing a unique memory module with them, working every angle of the cost equation”. Although Facebook is a valley and Web 2.0 up and come’r, it’s still no Google. I wonder if Intel would work as hard to slum it for the likes of Facebook? Or possibly Sheryl Sandberg pulled some tricks from her Google history to make the deal happen? Either way, my sources inside Facebook and Intel are on the technical side and say this is nowhere close to the significance or workload of the Google deal. Basically, Facebook will be getting a similiar platform to what Google’s been gobbling with a few minor tweaks. Rather anticlimatic, but it makes sense. Facebook doesn’t have the liquid capital to start a greenfield R&D exercise with Intel but both Intel and Facebook could use a PR injection amidst all the recession talk. This deal completely makes sense. Intel leverages the previous R&D investment and Facebook gets a high performance/low power server Google paid to develop.
Any developers, Intel developers, or specialists into multithreading and multicore development you might want to take advantage of this offer from Intel.
The Intel Software team just sent me this offer that I will pass along.
Free day pass to IDF or discount on the 3-day pass - FIFO queue on this offer.
Register now for a complimentary day pass1
Intel invites you to attend IDF on Wednesday, August 20, 2008, compliments of the Intel Software and Solutions Group.
To secure your Software Day Pass, click here and enter Promo Code: DPRSSG1.
Your free one-day pass admits you to Intel’s Software and Solutions Keynote, technical sessions, and the Technology Showcase, on Wednesday, August 20, 2008.
Join us for all 3 Days of IDF at a discounted rate
The 3-day pass to IDF is now available to the software developer community at a discounted rate of $695 (up to $1,000 savings). To take advantage of this offer, click here and enter Promo Code: BUBSSG1.
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