Comments on: RIP Microprocessor Startups

By: Exclusive: IBM to Partner With Chip Startups to Cut Costs - GigaOM

Exclusive: IBM to Partner With Chip Startups to Cut Costs - GigaOM — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 19:06:14 +0000

[...] 2008 at 12:05 PM PT Comments (0) Building a chip startup is such an expensive proposition that few investors are taking it on anymore. So IBM’s venture capital group is developing a partnership program with several VCs active [...]

By: Tom Lynch

Tom Lynch — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 03:15:24 +0000

Bosh, there are at least a half dozen processor start ups right now. There will always be new processors that do things differently to deliver value and investors who make money from them. Access to fabs will continue, and new ways will be found to aggregate chips for mask sets and to share the cost.

People who do not envision the future are always predicting it will be just like _right now_. Incumbents in office, or in industry, always advertise that experience (entrenchment) is necessary.

Also, what might be confusing things here is that we just witnessed the field narrow for the x86 clone chip battle. However, up and coming is the struggle for the media convergent processor, especially at low power. Market demographics are also shifting. So what you see in your back yard may not be the most important story anymore.

-tom

By: One More Sign Chip Startups Are Screwed - GigaOM

One More Sign Chip Startups Are Screwed - GigaOM — Wed, 14 May 2008 16:30:59 +0000

[...] living rooms into the enterprise. Funny what you can learn from Web 2.0. But it also raises the barriers to entry for anyone with a chip startup. Consumers won’t pay the margins enterprise gear makers will, [...]

By: DIAZEPAN information. » DIAZEPAN.US

DIAZEPAN information. » DIAZEPAN.US — Mon, 12 May 2008 14:11:17 +0000

[...] microprocessor companies too cost prohibitive? Are P.A. Semi and Montalvo the last to be acquired?read more | digg [...]

By: Investing in the Machines « Dan Reich

Investing in the Machines « Dan Reich — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 17:35:01 +0000

[...] industries out there? I recently read a post by GigaOM’s Stacey Higginbotham, titled “RIP Microprocessor Startups” discussing the issues and significant costs involved with chip-maker startups. A quote from [...]

By: Kevin Krewell

Kevin Krewell — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 17:02:09 +0000

While Linley has a valid point, I think there's still opportunities for processor startups - they just need a different business plan than what we've seen recently. Too many of these companies are focused on business models that are based on winning Cisco designs (Sibyte, Raza, Cavium and PA Semi) or the old "if we only get 1% (or 2% or 5%) of the PC market we'll be sucessfull (NexGen, Transmeta, and Montalvo).

An example of a company that thought different is Luminary Micro (Austin). They are using mature (cheap) process to make Arm-based microcontrollers. It's not as sexy as multicore, multi-GigaHertz state-of-the-art processors, but it fills a need, not an ego.