Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. provides both computing and graphics solutions, manufactured by its partner (and former subsidiary) GlobalFoundries, producing a dizzying array of components including microprocessors, motherboards, embedded processors, and graphics processors. These electronics are at the heart of many of the most successful new products of the last 20 years, and accordingly, AMD has grown into a multibillion enterprise, employing over 15,000 people worldwide.

AMD has a long history, at least for a company in the tech and computing sector. Founded in 1969 by Walter Jeremiah Sanders, the company distinguished itself early on by producing high-quality computer chips. Originally operating in the second source market where they were licensed to produce another company’s products, AMD signed a lucrative second source deal in 1982 with Intel, supplying chips to IBM personal computers. Intel later accused AMD of using this contract to reverse-engineer their own version of Intel’s chips, a product that AMD launched in 1991. A long court battle ensued. AMD eventually won in 1994, and the company acquired NextGen in 1996 and launched the first 1 gigahertz chip in 2000.

At the turn of the millennium, AMD was thriving, but like many technology companies, it was the subject of frenzied speculation in the lead-up to the dot com crisis. Its 2000 share price high would not be equaled again until 2020, a year in which profits doubled. However, it hasn’t all been plain sailing – for many years in between AMD was deeply unprofitable and always locked in fierce competition with Intel and NVIDIA. Sanders stepped down in 2002, and the four subsequent CEOs have focused on investing in research and development while growing AMD by acquisition. In 2020, AMD announced the acquisition of Xilinx, a manufacturer of programmable logic devices.

AMD first went public in 1972, listing on the New York Stock Exchange at $15.50 per share. In 2015, it moved its listing to the tech-focused NASDAQ exchange. As of 2021, it has a market capitalization of $187.67 billion. The company is headquartered in Santa Clara, California, and its largest institutional shareholders are the Mubadala Development Company, Abu Dhabi’s sovereign wealth fund, and Vanguard.