“AI is such an impactful technology, and we’re just at the beginning of this cycle,” said Lisa Su, CEO of AMD, during a conversation in Bengaluru. Su was in India to celebrate AMD’s 20-year journey in the country and inaugurate the latest phase of its largest R&D facility outside the United States. Her remarks underscored the pivotal role of India and AI in AMD’s strategy and in shaping global innovation.
Su described India as “an extremely strategic market” for AMD, pointing to the company’s $400 million investment plan through 2028 and the growth of its local workforce to over 8,000 employees. According to Su, AMD’s Bengaluru facility plays a crucial role across the company’s entire product portfolio.
“Every aspect of our product line goes through our design center here,” she noted, calling the 20-year collaboration with India a “remarkable experience.”
Su also expressed admiration for India’s efforts to become a global semiconductor hub under Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
“I have very high regard for Prime Minister Modi’s strong vision on technology, including semiconductors and AI,” she shared. Su commended India’s “pragmatic steps” to attract global players while building local infrastructure, but she cautioned that such ecosystems take time to mature. “These ecosystems don’t come overnight, but we see a lot of strong progress,” she said, emphasizing AMD’s ongoing commitment to India.
Shifting to AI, Su described the current moment as the dawn of a transformative era.
“We’re at the very beginning of the AI supercycle,” she remarked, while noting that AI, once a tool for experts, is now accessible to everyone thanks to generative models like ChatGPT. Su explained: “When you can use language to talk to your compute, you unlock a whole new set of users.”
She projected substantial growth for the AI market, estimating that demand for AI accelerators alone could surpass $500 billion by 2028. For Su, this growth represents a massive opportunity for innovation.
“There is no one-size-fits-all; there will be a tremendous need for different types of compute,” said Su, which underlines AMD’s role in providing foundational technologies to power AI.
Su underscored the importance of partnerships in advancing AI adoption.
“There is no one company that has all the assets required,” she stated, referencing AMD’s collaborations with industry giants like Microsoft, Meta, and startups with bold ideas. For Su, collaboration is key to ensuring that AI becomes inclusive and widely accessible. “One plus one can be greater than three in these environments,” she observed.
Addressing concerns about AI’s impact on jobs, Su stressed that AI will transform rather than eliminate roles.
“It’s about automating the most mundane, repetitive tasks so we can move everyone up the value chain,” she explained. Within AMD, AI is already accelerating chip development processes, but Su emphasized the enduring importance of human expertise. “We still need engineers with different skills,” she noted, calling for ongoing investment in education and training.
Looking ahead, Su sees a future where AI is embedded in every aspect of life, from healthcare and climate modeling to personalized computing experiences.
“Imagine AI in everything you touch,” she said, highlighting AMD’s focus on developing edge computing and AI-driven PCs to bring this vision closer to reality.
Reflecting on AMD’s journey, Su attributed the company’s exponential growth — from $4 billion in 2015 to over $25 billion in 2023 — to its focus on high-performance computing and innovation.
“Our philosophy is to create excellent technology and great partnerships in an open ecosystem,” she said. With AI at the heart of AMD’s strategy, Su sees the next decade as a time of profound technological progress driven by collaboration, innovation, and global connectivity.
