Chipmaker Advanced Micro Devices is to create almost 300 jobs in Ireland over the next four years as part of a $135 million (€124 million) investment in its adaptive computing research, development and engineering operations here.
The company is recruiting for engineering and research positions, along with a number of support roles. The investment will also support several strategic research and development projects in areas such as AI, data centres, networking and 6G communications infrastructure.
The move follows AMD’s $35 billion acquisition of Xilinx, which is aimed at reshaping one of the computer chip industry’s pioneers. The deal included Xilinx’s Irish operations, set up in 1994 as the company’s first purpose-built site outside the US. Ireland now hosts one of the largest AMD R&D sites in Europe.
“For nearly three decades, Ireland has been a flagship European R&D centre developing adaptive computing solutions, drawing from a strong and highly-skilled workforce,” said AMD’s Ruth Cotter. “By further investing and expanding our presence in Dublin and Cork, we are committed to continuing to drive innovation in Ireland and to support the European semiconductor ecosystem. Through this investment, our R&D teams in Ireland will design innovative high-performance and adaptive computing engines to accelerate data centre, networking, 6G communications and embedded solutions while taking a leadership position on artificial intelligence.”
The expansion was announced in Dublin by Ms Cotter, who is AMD’s senior vice-president of marketing, communications and human resources, and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Simon Coveney.
Mr Coveney welcomed the expansion plan. “This significant investment will not only bolster our thriving technology sector but also create long-term career opportunities for highly experienced professionals and new graduates from engineering disciplines,” he said. “The company’s plans to add up to 290 new positions and its funding of strategically important R&D projects demonstrate its confidence in Ireland’s supportive enterprise environment and infrastructure.”
The expansion is being supported by IDA Ireland. The agency previously partnered with Xilinx on semiconductor innovation in Ireland, including a $40 million investment in 2017 to expand its research, development and engineering operations and add 100 new jobs.
“This investment will continue to push the boundaries of what is possible while contributing further to Ireland’s position as a global technology leader,” said Michael Lohan, chief executive of IDA Ireland. “This expansion further strengthens the company’s presence in Ireland as a leading centre of semiconductor innovation and puts Ireland at the heart of AMD’s European research and engineering operations.”
At the time of the AMD’s deal for Xilinx in 2020, the latter was the biggest maker of chips that can be reconfigured for a variety of specialised tasks after they leave the factory. Such field programmable gate arrays, as they are called, have long been particularly popular in telecommunications applications, such as cellular base stations now being upgraded for the latest 5G technology.
