Intel has entered into a definitive agreement with Cray
Inc. to acquire certain assets related to its
high-performance computing (HPC) interconnect program.
With the agreement, Intel gains access to Cray's
interconnect personnel and intellectual property.
The Cray interconnect team is responsible for the
Gemini interconnect as well as the upcoming Aries
interconnect, designed to work in Cray's next-generation
supercomputer, codenamed "Cascade," which will
integrate Intel Xeon processors. The transaction is
expected to close before the end of the current quarter,
subject to customary closing conditions being met.
Gemini is an interconnect capable of millions of messages per second and designed for multicore processors. The Aries interconnect chipset allows the system to scale along with network bandwidth.
"Delivering continued advancement in high-performance
computing, including breaking the Exascale barrier,
requires tremendous innovation in interconnect
technology," said Diane Bryant, vice president and
general manager of Intel's Datacenter and Connected
System Group. "The acquisition of Cray's
industry-leading interconnect technology and expertise
provides exceptional strategic assets that further
enhance Intel's HPC portfolio. We?re excited about the
value this will allow us to bring to our customers."