AMD presence in Ireland dates back to 1994 via Xilinx acquisition

AMD, or Advanced Micro Devices, is the high-performance and adaptive computing leader, powering the products and services that help solve the world’s most important challenges
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The company was founded in 1969 and is headquartered in Santa Clara, California, with approximately 25,000 employees around the world. Following the acquisition of Xilinx in 2022, AMD now has a strong presence in Ireland with engineering/R&D sites in Dublin and Cork. 

Ireland’s vantage point for EU expansion

In 1994, Xilinx chose Ireland to set up its first purpose-built site outside of the US to be closer to its growing customer base and support its gained market momentum in Europe and Asia. It began operations in 1995 at its own bespoke building in Citywest, focused on manufacturing and operations support. 

Over the years, its Ireland sites in Dublin and Cork have grown and shifted their strategic direction to focus on engineering and research and development while continuing to support key business functions in Europe. In 2001, the company expanded R&D in its Dublin and Cork sites and opened its European data centre in Dublin. In 2008, it established a branch of its Global Customer Engineering Division in Dublin and four years later, it expanded its electronics engineering team in Ireland. 
 

Expanding R&D to drive innovation 

The company has partnered with IDA Ireland on many occasions as it has grown its presence and operations in the region. In 2017, it invested $40 million to expand its research, development and engineering operations and recruit more than 100 new skilled employees. 

Today, Ireland is home to one of Europe’s largest AMD R&D sites with a strong record of delivering products with significant commercial success in the telecommunications, healthcare and automotive sectors. 

In June 2023, AMD announced a four-year investment of up to $135 million (€126 million) to fund several strategic R&D projects as part of its plans for continued growth in Ireland. 

This investment will create up to 290 highly skilled engineering and research positions, along with a broad range of additional business support roles. The investment includes several key R&D projects aimed to accelerate innovations in the data centre, networking, communications and embedded segments, including projects designed at advancing 6G wireless communications and future generations of AMD AI technology. 

How Ireland Helps AMD

• AMD presence in Ireland dates back to 1994 via Xilinx acquisition
• Irish sites began as manufacturing bases and have made transition to R&D
• Irish teams have delivered commercially successful products and innovative IP 
• In 2023, AMD announced a four-year $135 million investment in Irish operations