Advanced Micro Devices on Friday denied a report that it had improperly transferred vital microprocessor technology to Chinese companions.
On Thursday, The Wall Street Journal mentioned that AMD’s 2016 joint project known as Tianjin Haiguang Advanced Technology Investment, or THAT, allowed a corporation with ties to the Chinese army to attain a chip era that could raise China’s supercomputer efforts. The story got here a week after the U.S. Commerce Department, in particular, banned AMD’s Chinese partners from gaining access to such U.S. Era, correctly ending the common challenge.
But AMD drove again on Friday morning, pronouncing that the technology used in the joint task did not involve its excessive performance chips and was permitted for sharing by using the Commerce Department.
“The Wall Street Journal tale contains numerous factual mistakes and omissions and does now not portray a correct photo of the joint ventures that AMD entered into with THAT in early 2016,” AMD favorite recommend Harry Wolin said in the announcement. “AMD takes sturdy exception to characterizations within the tale that it did not act well or transparently in creating the joint ventures.”
The newspaper “stands by using its reporting,” spokeswoman Colleen Schwartz said in response to a request for remark from Fortune.
The tale mentioned retired Brig. Gen. Robert Spalding, a former staffer at the National Security Council, as announcing AMD had shared “the keys to the kingdom” of U.S. microprocessor generation. Spalding left the NSC ultimate yr after a controversy over an offer he wrote, titled “The Eisenhower National Highway System for the Information Age,” suggesting a central authority-led attempt become needed to accelerate the advent of 5G wi-fi carrier.
AMD disputed Spalding’s characterization of the technology it shared in the joint undertaking. “AMD received no objections whatsoever from any organization to the formation of the joint ventures or to the transfer of technology – era which becomes of lower performance than different commercially available processors,” the corporation stated. “In truth, before the formation of the joint ventures and the switch of the era, the Department of Commerce notified AMD that the age proposed became not restricted or otherwise prohibited from being transferred.
Given this clean feedback, AMD moved in advance with the joint ventures.”
The story didn’t sit down nicely with chip enterprise representative and previous AMD employee Patrick Moorhead. “Having recognized AMD for near 30 years, I will say its legal branch is the most conservative and risk-averse I have ever worked with,” he cited on Twitter. “EVER. Conservative to a fault, losing opportunities and exasperating advertising VPs, CMOs and CSOs.”
AMD’s inventory price, which has rocketed up 65% this yr, changed into down 1% in noon trading on Friday.
