12 ms·

AMD’s Lisa Su

326 points by sohkamyung 5y ago

em3rgent0rdr 5y ago
> Since then, AMD's stock has soared—from less than US $2 per share to more than $110. Quite a turnaround.
- The_rationalist 5y ago
  I bought at $2
- beebeepka 5y ago
  Still kicking myself for missing out on the 2 dollar bonanza. 50 times growth is no joke. Even some regular folks might've made their first million with Lisa. Is it too late to buy AMD stock? It hasn't made much progress since last year. ASML, on the other hand, has had a fantastic couple of years. Buying stock nisbrisky. Being indecisive is also risky due to the crazy inflation.
  - Macha 5y ago
    I bought some a few months back at $80, it's now at $105, so it's still grown in recent times. My feeling is it really depends on if they can cement themselves enough to pick up serious datacenter share before someone gets into a technically competitive position (Intel getting their plans back together, an ARM vendor convincing people to make the switch). From what Intel's revealed so far, that feels a couple of years out still.
  - bejelentkezni 5y ago
    Time in the market beats timing in the market. It sounds like a meaningless mantra or cop-out, but really, there's no reason to regret missing $2 when there's no time or reason in the foreseeable future where a silicon portfolio won't perform bonkers. Disclaimer: I own no stock.
    - tkojames 5y ago
      This and if you owned just total market index funds you are up over 40 percent from last year. I never try to beat the market just ride it. I am in it for the long term.
  - enchiridion 5y ago
    If you want a moderately more risky play, consider buying XLNX. AMD bought XLNX for an all stock deal at a fixed conversion rate (as in it stays the same regardless of the price of the two sticks) of 1.7. Currently the ratio is only 1.5 due to uncertainty if the deal will get through regulatory approval, which is a nice arbitrage opportunity if you think it will.
    - vasco 5y ago
      Which is a bet. Both can go down together and close the gap on the way. Or the deal may not be approved by regulators or a million other things.
  - celim307 5y ago
    I bought 10k shares @ 2.60, but had to divest for various work related and legal reasons. How do you think I feel? Also had to sell a similar stake in Microsoft before the turnaround :(
    - agumonkey 5y ago
      I found trading vapid and soulless, but there are some very philosophical notions about profit and choice facing uncertainty that are somehow fascinating. I found this to match existential questions in harsh times.
      - em3rgent0rdr 5y ago
        What do you expect out of trading? To get a soul-inspiring philosophical revelation? But trading is simply trading...exchanging things you have for things others have that you believe will in net bring more benefit to you. Get your soul-enriching experiences elsewhere, and use the money you get from trading to help find them.
        agumonkey 5y ago
        I find your comment of low value.
      - AQuantized 5y ago
        I've enjoyed trading a lot, but find that when I/others become consumed by it alone that it's a bitter existence. By avoid daytrading, and ensuring I'm not invested in anything that I'm forced to constantly worry about or check, it takes a long of the sting out.
        agumonkey 5y ago
        I don't know about you but everytime I sold a near top I felt bad for the people that bought. That's why I found it soulless, a lot of it revolves on the fact that some people are in better position financially and informationally to make gains at the expense of others. Now maybe I'm too mellow but that's how I felt doing it at first. Maybe I'd rather be a team leader that makes everybody happier working together and sharing.. I can't say.
  - m0zg 5y ago
    With what's going on in China (Lehman Brothers 2.0 on steroids and cocaine, and printing press that puts US Fed to shame), and massive over-valuation of the stock market in the US now would not be a good time to buy _any_ stocks IMO. This is not financial advice: use your own brain.
    - svet_0 5y ago
      People are saying this every day from the day the stock market opened. The reality is that the market is practically a random walk and to find alpha you mostly need luck.
      - m0zg 5y ago
        Right now you're much more likely to _not_ find luck. Look up Evergrande. But hey, it's your money, feel free to give all of it to me, via my short positions.
  - omgwtfbyobbq 5y ago
    Ditto. I remember thinking at $6+ it wasn't as appealing. Did the same thing with Tesla at about $70.
  - lhl 5y ago
    I bought at <2, at 5, at 10, at 20, 30, 50, and most recently (just a few months ago during the last retrace) at 75. AMD has been an execution machine, and honestly, even if/when Intel finally brings back competition, AMD will be fine as long as they keep executing. At this point, there are probably better risk-adjusted places to put your money, but to your point on inflation - 40% of all USD was printed last year, so it seems to me, anyone looking to preserve their savings would be best served looking for some hard assets.
    - meltedcapacitor 5y ago
      An AMD share gives you ownership of circa $2 worth of hard assets (net tangible assets), an extra $1 of soft assets (rest of balance sheet: IP, goodwill, etc), and $102 worth of... other things. How much of that is hopium and how much is fair value of future prospects?
  - arvinsim 5y ago
    I have been following AMD because of their hardware improvements.l since 1xxx. I was not financially savvy at that time. If I was, I would have bought their stocks
COGlory 5y ago
Hire an engineer
- deleted 5y ago
  [deleted]
macktl 5y ago
Count how many times she has appeared on HN. And make a prediction on how many times she will appear in future. Corporations are full of well programmed hyper efficient mindless corporate robots who keep the factory lights on. They are all interchangable and no one gives a shit which of them is in charge. The type of people who smash glass ceilings arent robots. This is another Kamala Harris or Sheryl Sandberg.
- deleted 5y ago
  [deleted]
- kolbe 5y ago
  I don’t even know what you’re trying to say, but I’m not gonna lie, it doesn’t sound very good.
  - schmorptron 5y ago
    The comment reads pretty positively to me? As in, "the kind of people who are strong enough to break through glass ceilings are more than just interchangable corporate robots".
    - kolbe 5y ago
      But he’s implying that the leader of one of the most innovate companies in the past decade is a mindless corporate robot? But Sheryl Sanberg (an ex-McKinsey playbook follower) is more than that? It’s such an absurd assertion that I feel I must have misunderstood.
      - schmorptron 5y ago
        Huh, no idea what it said since it's flagged now, but it was 4 AM when I originally read it so I must've misinterpreted it. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
- deleted 5y ago
  [deleted]
- 5y ago
buescher 5y ago
Good for her. Good for anyone. AMD has been spectacular. Calling it breaking through any kind of ceiling is almost inappropriate. It’s refreshing to see this kind of press in the wake of great things instead of disseminated by her publicist to get her to the next rung somewhere.
- tomnipotent 5y ago
  > is almost inappropriate I don't think there's any denying that woman have faced decades of discrimination in the workplace, and that the current zeitgeist is that this discrimination was and is particularly bad in technology-related fields. In that context, it makes her contributions and accomplishments all the more considerable. I don't see how that's insulting to acknowledge, that she likely had more obstacles working against her than her male peers. Pretty well documented obstacles, with no shortage of examples.
kolbe 5y ago
Lisa Su is absolutely amazing. And I love the context of her success. She is kicking ass because she really is the best leader in hardware. That she is a woman is incidental. She doesn’t play identity politics or milk her femininity. She just wins and wins and wins by delivering great products at a company that was newly left for dead a decade ago. I want to see more female CEOs like her, because there are too many like Mary Barra who are there to show the company has a strong female at the helm. And people like her end up doing really poorly and give fuel to sexists. People like Lisa Su just show that women can straight up compete and win.
- tyingq 5y ago
  I don't know much about Mary Barra, but GM seems to be doing well versus their competition: https://finance.yahoo.com/quote/GM/chart?p=GM#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 https://finance.yahoo.com/quote/GM/chart?p=GM#eyJpbnRlcnZhbC...
iammisc 5y ago
Lisa Su is awesome, not because she's female, but because literally she's amazing. AMD's transformation is nothing short of spectacular
- listless 5y ago
  I find the “amazing, look what a woman did!” narrative to be incredibly insulting. But congrats to Lisa Su as the person who turned AMD around. They have, IMO, utterly eclipsed Intel. I wouldn’t buy anything else.
  - renbrom446 5y ago
    I'd love to know how much AMD's massive lead is due to AMD's designs and how much it is due to TSMC's 7nm node. Alder Lake on Intel 7 looks like it will largely close the gap, so I think that means AMDs designs are roughly on par with Intel's and the massive eclipsing is due to TSMC. Of course being on par with Intel's IP is still a huge accomplishment.
    - jpgvm 5y ago
      Most of their current lead is down to Zen which is architecturally superior to the current Intel Core architecture.
    - atty 5y ago
      To be fair, as I understand it, feature density of Intel 7 nm is more like TSMC 5 nm, from what I have read. Also, I think they took a risk with switching to a chiplet design, and it paid off big for them. Not sure who was in charge of design was when they laid out that roadmap, but whoever it was, and Lisa Su and the upper management, get some kudos for that. Of course, it’s quite possible that move could have failed and we’d be laughing at them just like we did for the bulldozer architecture, so maybe they just got lucky :) But I do agree, all these comparisons we’ve seen between Intel 14 and TSMC 7 have been… less than helpful for comparing technology. Good for end users making purchasing decisions, of course.
golemiprague 5y ago
Sorry but I am not impressed by women in tech. Even when they do get to prominent roles it is not after creating a company from scratch or working in the technical trenches, it is usually just being corporate types who climb to the top. I don't think it is some glass ceiling, it is just that women don't want to risk anything, don't want to dirty their hands with the actual development of the products and don't have any originality or drive to change things. Women just want to do caring jobs or moving money around, that's why they are doing so well as doctors, lawyers or in marketing. It is a waste of time trying to push them to do things they don't like and don't want to do. Those jobs were open now for years for women and women have made their choice.
wbl 5y ago
How did Lynn Conway not get this award?
- cassonmars 5y ago
  Came here to ask the same thing.
synergy20 5y ago
She failed to revive Freescale before she left for AMD. In fact her strategy at Freescale sped up its failure, but she learned from that missteps and saved AMD. AMD also got a huge injection of investment from the middle east. Without that money nobody can save it. She is great, but not that great.
- unnouinceput 5y ago
  "She is great and not alone" - perhaps that's what you wanted to say?
imranq 5y ago
She is credited for turning around the entire company from bankruptcy to now eclipsing Intel. Out of admiration and curiosity, how does one go about doing that?
- tomnipotent 5y ago
  > eclipsing Intel AMD had 2020 revenues of $9.76bln to Intel's $77.87bln. This eclipse is going to take awhile. I'm really excited for the results.
  - samhwr 5y ago
    >> eclipsing Intel > AMD had 2020 revenues of $9.76bln to Intel's $77.87bln. Ever heard of a solar eclipse? ;)
  - arp242 5y ago
    Intel also has a much broader product line; when people talk about "Intel vs. AMD" they're mostly talking about CPUs, and it would be fairer to compare the revenue only from those parts of the Intel and AMD businesses. Right now it seems that Intel has roughly a 60% market share of x86 CPUs vs. ~40% for AMD. I don't now what that is in terms of $ revenue. Intel was never 8 times bigger; AMD has actually always retained a respectable market share; ~20% market share is nothing to sneer at.
    - tomnipotent 5y ago
      AMD also has GPU, embedded, and custom (like Xbox/PS5). Don't get me wrong, I'm an AMD fan since the day I bought my first Athlon and am happy for their success. Good time to be a customer.
      - arp242 5y ago
        Of course, but Intel has more of it, so if you're comparing CPU revenue you should look only at that part of their businesses.
- deleted 5y ago
noahtallen 5y ago
I found it absolutely hilarious that this award is sponsored by Intel! Anyways, love where AMD is going. Super curious to see if their next GPUs will finally give Nvidia a run for their money at the high end.
- ur-whale 5y ago
  > see if their next GPUs will finally give Nvidia a run for their money at the high end. Even if their hardware catches up with and beats that of NVidia, they will still have a huge problem with the software ecosystem. Everyone who does anything serious with GPGPU and supercomputing is using CUDA, (a proprietary abomination) these days and AMD does not have a competitive product in that space. That said, the software ecosystem around GPUs is an extraordinary mess, and there is therefore a huge opportunity for the company that can fix it. Unfortunately, this is a deep cultural problem: as witnessed by the giant mess that is the Nvidia software ecosystem (nightmarish driver version management, proprietary technology, huge unwieldy binary distribution to install anytime you want to run 20 lines of GPGPU code, lack of properly working and debugging and profiling tools, etc...) companies run by EEs (such as Dr. Su) simply don't have the DNA to produce simple, clean, elegant, working software. The kind of brain it takes to produce cutting edge silicon and the kind of brain it takes to produce cutting edge software are imo simply incompatible.
  - imwillofficial 5y ago
    I generally agree. Apple seems to fly in the face of this however. Their silicon story is an interesting one lately
    - leucineleprec0n 5y ago
      It flies and stops halfway in the face. Apple’s developer tool chains (at least, for iOS and the world of mobile apps and games, Metal notwithstanding) are decent, their codebase is at least a cleaner implementation than what Google have with the combined GPL & refactoring nightmare of the Linux kernel & Android (to be solved by my beloved Fuchsia in time, surely) — but it’s not as if Apple are really a shining light on software overall. To be honest, they absolutely suck. C+ tier stuff. iOS background management, iOS & MacOS UI since iOS 7 & Big Chu—Sur respectively, woefully inadequate security defense on all systems, an AWFUL file manager on MacOS dubbed “Finder”, garbage implementation of Bluetooth and WiFi antennae status on control panel, no iOS option for reasonable DPI scaling (zoomed doesn’t count), excessive font smoothing only modifiable via Terminal as of MacOS Big Sur — excessive use of advanced animation and sickening transparency leading to poor performance on hardware that makes Android or Windows fly. Oh, no option to delete all messages at any given time via a simple “select all” button in the edit bar for Messages, nor an ability to export all messages to a fricking plaintext file or HTML. The list continues, and is a long one worthy of a short documentary. Apple excels at a few interface consistencies and at selling premium hardware with high margins in part due to an admittedly deserved proficiency with supply chain consistency & scale, and with convincing customers to pay with their kidneys for marginal upgrades e.g. 400% up charges on RAM and Storage. The M1 is impressive, certainly agree, but it won’t be too long before others catch-up. Still, let’s not get ahead of ourselves about Apple and software prowess. It’s been a long time since I preferred Cupertino’s code to Redmond’s or Mountain View’s.
softfalcon 5y ago
I met her once when I was 9. She’s a really nice and friendly person to talk to. Listened to my brother and I talk about Pokémon for a good 15 minutes at least. Now she’s running AMD, kicking ass and taking names. Pretty frigging cool.
- em3rgent0rdr 5y ago
  How long ago was that and where?
  - softfalcon 5y ago
    I’m ball parking it cause I was a little kid, but roughly 20-ish years ago? Late 90’s to early 2000-something. At one of the Motorola research plants in Arizona. Back when Motorola still made semiconductor and PowerPC chips.
    - weird-eye-issue 5y ago
      You said you met her when you were 9. Assuming you know how old you are now, why do you have to then ballpark the year? Just curious
      - qwertox 5y ago
        No reason why OP should disclose his age.
      - sigg3 5y ago
        Not op, but personally I have to break out the calculator when it comes to my own age. It's like it's a more viscous entity than an integer.
        cto_of_antifa 5y ago
        Is this a math joke I don't get? How are integers a thick liquid?
        5y ago
spoonjim 5y ago
And she did it without being “marketable” which is so often something the market demands of female CEOs.
- ur-whale 5y ago
  Yup. Surprising: looks like putting someone in charge who actually understands - in depth - how the business and the tech. that powers is actually works instead of random MBA-wielding drones seem to yield good results. And Intel is also finally learning that lesson with their new CEO.
- tootahe45 5y ago
  I don't think the market demands it, just the media. Ive noticed the feminist media only focus on pretty white women CEOs, even when they are often disastrous for the company (Yahoo). I've been surprised by the lack of reporting about Lisa's success.
blobbers 5y ago
Is "Lu" her nickname? 'Looking back, Lu divides her career path into two parts.' bad copy editor?
- stefanfisk 5y ago
  Looks completely normal to me, like using "MacArthur" all over the place in https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Douglas_MacArthur https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Douglas_MacArthur.
  - lancebeet 5y ago
    That doesn't really seem comparable to me, since her surname is Su and not Lu. It would be more like using "DougArthur" in that article.
    - stefanfisk 5y ago
      wow, I just didn't see what was wrong until you pointed it out that clearly. probably sloppy editing, since the articles uses "Su" aaalmost consistently.
- tvphan 5y ago
  A lot of people on Reddit call her Su Bae.
dis-sys 5y ago
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Im6xQyglYuU https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Im6xQyglYuU
mastrsushi 5y ago
Mommy Multi-Core
intricatedetail 5y ago
There are probably countless workers behind her who made Ryzen possible, but they don't get awards. Probably just above average salary. I don't get this cult of a person in tech. Has this ever ended well?
ChrisMarshallNY 5y ago
Reminds me of this reporter’s gaffe: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Im6xQyglYuU https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Im6xQyglYuU
cwizou 5y ago
As part of my former job I used to follow AMD very closely and I have to say that while maybe misplaced in some ways, she deserves all the praise she gets and then some. Some context, when she took over, not only was the CPU division in shambles and the product line not that great, but the internal infighting was terrible between the GPU and the CPU division. Most of it was fuelled by the marketing department taking the GPU side. Not only did she had to handle this, but soon enough she had part of the company actively working against her to get her removed and replaced. I can't tell you how many times some very senior AMD people would go to the press and bad mouth her, talking about her incompetence (and I'm putting things mildly), and seeding rumors about her near and ineluctable ousting. Political infighting in a large org is always a thing, but I never noticed anything that publicly overt (at least to the press), prolonged, and acrimonious. She focused a lot on righting the CPU division and getting the trust of key senior people there and in the end, it paid. During that same period, same people from above were seeding rumors that Ryzen was going to be a bust, and the character attacks went up to 11. I remember the first Ryzen press event, and you could see a mix of relief and confidence (I would say that prior to that event, she never appeared confident on stage) that came with it during her presentation. At that time she knew that not only she had a good product line for the next few years, but that the coup attempt would die down. It took some time but those behind the attempts left the company and AMD ended up in a better place. So yep, her resilience always impressed me and she will never get enough credit for it. AMD's turnaround is obviously not just hers, it's shared with many key people (eg. on Zen, Mike Clark, and Keller who - check for the Anandtech interview in another comment [1] - made the battered and bruised teams believe they actually could). But she definitely played a large part in it. A bit before Ryzen was released, I remember casually asking one very senior person on the CPU division what he thought about Lisa. He started talking about the fact that sometimes she sets impossible deadlines (which boss doesn't?), but then he paused and reflected a bit and said "but she listens and understands". Coming from that person, that was about as much praise anyone in management could get. [1] : https://www.anandtech.com/show/16762/an-anandtech-interview-with-jim-keller-laziest-person-at-tesla https://www.anandtech.com/show/16762/an-anandtech-interview-...
lvl100 5y ago
Bronx Science represent!
einpoklum 5y ago
While Lisa Su seems like an impressive person, the linked story is basically a PR piece with a very low signal/noise ratio.

AMD’s Lisa Su

326 points by sohkamyung 5y ago

em3rgent0rdr 5y ago

> Since then, AMD's stock has soared—from less than US $2 per share to more than $110. Quite a turnaround.

The_rationalist 5y ago
I bought at $2
beebeepka 5y ago
Still kicking myself for missing out on the 2 dollar bonanza. 50 times growth is no joke. Even some regular folks might've made their first million with Lisa. Is it too late to buy AMD stock? It hasn't made much progress since last year. ASML, on the other hand, has had a fantastic couple of years. Buying stock nisbrisky. Being indecisive is also risky due to the crazy inflation.
- Macha 5y ago
  I bought some a few months back at $80, it's now at $105, so it's still grown in recent times. My feeling is it really depends on if they can cement themselves enough to pick up serious datacenter share before someone gets into a technically competitive position (Intel getting their plans back together, an ARM vendor convincing people to make the switch). From what Intel's revealed so far, that feels a couple of years out still.
- bejelentkezni 5y ago
  Time in the market beats timing in the market. It sounds like a meaningless mantra or cop-out, but really, there's no reason to regret missing $2 when there's no time or reason in the foreseeable future where a silicon portfolio won't perform bonkers. Disclaimer: I own no stock.
  - tkojames 5y ago
    This and if you owned just total market index funds you are up over 40 percent from last year. I never try to beat the market just ride it. I am in it for the long term.
- enchiridion 5y ago
  If you want a moderately more risky play, consider buying XLNX. AMD bought XLNX for an all stock deal at a fixed conversion rate (as in it stays the same regardless of the price of the two sticks) of 1.7. Currently the ratio is only 1.5 due to uncertainty if the deal will get through regulatory approval, which is a nice arbitrage opportunity if you think it will.
  - vasco 5y ago
    Which is a bet. Both can go down together and close the gap on the way. Or the deal may not be approved by regulators or a million other things.
- celim307 5y ago
  I bought 10k shares @ 2.60, but had to divest for various work related and legal reasons. How do you think I feel? Also had to sell a similar stake in Microsoft before the turnaround :(
  - agumonkey 5y ago
    I found trading vapid and soulless, but there are some very philosophical notions about profit and choice facing uncertainty that are somehow fascinating. I found this to match existential questions in harsh times.
    - em3rgent0rdr 5y ago
      What do you expect out of trading? To get a soul-inspiring philosophical revelation? But trading is simply trading...exchanging things you have for things others have that you believe will in net bring more benefit to you. Get your soul-enriching experiences elsewhere, and use the money you get from trading to help find them.
      - agumonkey 5y ago
        I find your comment of low value.
    - AQuantized 5y ago
      I've enjoyed trading a lot, but find that when I/others become consumed by it alone that it's a bitter existence. By avoid daytrading, and ensuring I'm not invested in anything that I'm forced to constantly worry about or check, it takes a long of the sting out.
      - agumonkey 5y ago
        I don't know about you but everytime I sold a near top I felt bad for the people that bought. That's why I found it soulless, a lot of it revolves on the fact that some people are in better position financially and informationally to make gains at the expense of others. Now maybe I'm too mellow but that's how I felt doing it at first. Maybe I'd rather be a team leader that makes everybody happier working together and sharing.. I can't say.
- m0zg 5y ago
  With what's going on in China (Lehman Brothers 2.0 on steroids and cocaine, and printing press that puts US Fed to shame), and massive over-valuation of the stock market in the US now would not be a good time to buy _any_ stocks IMO. This is not financial advice: use your own brain.
  - svet_0 5y ago
    People are saying this every day from the day the stock market opened. The reality is that the market is practically a random walk and to find alpha you mostly need luck.
    - m0zg 5y ago
      Right now you're much more likely to _not_ find luck. Look up Evergrande. But hey, it's your money, feel free to give all of it to me, via my short positions.
- omgwtfbyobbq 5y ago
  Ditto. I remember thinking at $6+ it wasn't as appealing. Did the same thing with Tesla at about $70.
- lhl 5y ago
  I bought at <2, at 5, at 10, at 20, 30, 50, and most recently (just a few months ago during the last retrace) at 75. AMD has been an execution machine, and honestly, even if/when Intel finally brings back competition, AMD will be fine as long as they keep executing. At this point, there are probably better risk-adjusted places to put your money, but to your point on inflation - 40% of all USD was printed last year, so it seems to me, anyone looking to preserve their savings would be best served looking for some hard assets.
  - meltedcapacitor 5y ago
    An AMD share gives you ownership of circa $2 worth of hard assets (net tangible assets), an extra $1 of soft assets (rest of balance sheet: IP, goodwill, etc), and $102 worth of... other things. How much of that is hopium and how much is fair value of future prospects?
- arvinsim 5y ago
  I have been following AMD because of their hardware improvements.l since 1xxx. I was not financially savvy at that time. If I was, I would have bought their stocks

COGlory 5y ago

Hire an engineer

deleted 5y ago
[deleted]

macktl 5y ago

Count how many times she has appeared on HN. And make a prediction on how many times she will appear in future. Corporations are full of well programmed hyper efficient mindless corporate robots who keep the factory lights on. They are all interchangable and no one gives a shit which of them is in charge. The type of people who smash glass ceilings arent robots. This is another Kamala Harris or Sheryl Sandberg.

deleted 5y ago
[deleted]
kolbe 5y ago
I don’t even know what you’re trying to say, but I’m not gonna lie, it doesn’t sound very good.
- schmorptron 5y ago
  The comment reads pretty positively to me? As in, "the kind of people who are strong enough to break through glass ceilings are more than just interchangable corporate robots".
  - kolbe 5y ago
    But he’s implying that the leader of one of the most innovate companies in the past decade is a mindless corporate robot? But Sheryl Sanberg (an ex-McKinsey playbook follower) is more than that? It’s such an absurd assertion that I feel I must have misunderstood.
    - schmorptron 5y ago
      Huh, no idea what it said since it's flagged now, but it was 4 AM when I originally read it so I must've misinterpreted it. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
deleted 5y ago
[deleted]
5y ago

buescher 5y ago

Good for her. Good for anyone. AMD has been spectacular. Calling it breaking through any kind of ceiling is almost inappropriate. It’s refreshing to see this kind of press in the wake of great things instead of disseminated by her publicist to get her to the next rung somewhere.

tomnipotent 5y ago
> is almost inappropriate I don't think there's any denying that woman have faced decades of discrimination in the workplace, and that the current zeitgeist is that this discrimination was and is particularly bad in technology-related fields. In that context, it makes her contributions and accomplishments all the more considerable. I don't see how that's insulting to acknowledge, that she likely had more obstacles working against her than her male peers. Pretty well documented obstacles, with no shortage of examples.

kolbe 5y ago

Lisa Su is absolutely amazing. And I love the context of her success. She is kicking ass because she really is the best leader in hardware. That she is a woman is incidental. She doesn’t play identity politics or milk her femininity. She just wins and wins and wins by delivering great products at a company that was newly left for dead a decade ago. I want to see more female CEOs like her, because there are too many like Mary Barra who are there to show the company has a strong female at the helm. And people like her end up doing really poorly and give fuel to sexists. People like Lisa Su just show that women can straight up compete and win.

tyingq 5y ago
I don't know much about Mary Barra, but GM seems to be doing well versus their competition: https://finance.yahoo.com/quote/GM/chart?p=GM#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 https://finance.yahoo.com/quote/GM/chart?p=GM#eyJpbnRlcnZhbC...

iammisc 5y ago

Lisa Su is awesome, not because she's female, but because literally she's amazing. AMD's transformation is nothing short of spectacular

listless 5y ago
I find the “amazing, look what a woman did!” narrative to be incredibly insulting. But congrats to Lisa Su as the person who turned AMD around. They have, IMO, utterly eclipsed Intel. I wouldn’t buy anything else.
- renbrom446 5y ago
  I'd love to know how much AMD's massive lead is due to AMD's designs and how much it is due to TSMC's 7nm node. Alder Lake on Intel 7 looks like it will largely close the gap, so I think that means AMDs designs are roughly on par with Intel's and the massive eclipsing is due to TSMC. Of course being on par with Intel's IP is still a huge accomplishment.
  - jpgvm 5y ago
    Most of their current lead is down to Zen which is architecturally superior to the current Intel Core architecture.
  - atty 5y ago
    To be fair, as I understand it, feature density of Intel 7 nm is more like TSMC 5 nm, from what I have read. Also, I think they took a risk with switching to a chiplet design, and it paid off big for them. Not sure who was in charge of design was when they laid out that roadmap, but whoever it was, and Lisa Su and the upper management, get some kudos for that. Of course, it’s quite possible that move could have failed and we’d be laughing at them just like we did for the bulldozer architecture, so maybe they just got lucky :) But I do agree, all these comparisons we’ve seen between Intel 14 and TSMC 7 have been… less than helpful for comparing technology. Good for end users making purchasing decisions, of course.

golemiprague 5y ago

Sorry but I am not impressed by women in tech. Even when they do get to prominent roles it is not after creating a company from scratch or working in the technical trenches, it is usually just being corporate types who climb to the top. I don't think it is some glass ceiling, it is just that women don't want to risk anything, don't want to dirty their hands with the actual development of the products and don't have any originality or drive to change things. Women just want to do caring jobs or moving money around, that's why they are doing so well as doctors, lawyers or in marketing. It is a waste of time trying to push them to do things they don't like and don't want to do. Those jobs were open now for years for women and women have made their choice.

wbl 5y ago

How did Lynn Conway not get this award?

cassonmars 5y ago
Came here to ask the same thing.

synergy20 5y ago

She failed to revive Freescale before she left for AMD. In fact her strategy at Freescale sped up its failure, but she learned from that missteps and saved AMD. AMD also got a huge injection of investment from the middle east. Without that money nobody can save it. She is great, but not that great.

unnouinceput 5y ago
"She is great and not alone" - perhaps that's what you wanted to say?

imranq 5y ago

She is credited for turning around the entire company from bankruptcy to now eclipsing Intel. Out of admiration and curiosity, how does one go about doing that?

tomnipotent 5y ago
> eclipsing Intel AMD had 2020 revenues of $9.76bln to Intel's $77.87bln. This eclipse is going to take awhile. I'm really excited for the results.
- samhwr 5y ago
  >> eclipsing Intel > AMD had 2020 revenues of $9.76bln to Intel's $77.87bln. Ever heard of a solar eclipse? ;)
- arp242 5y ago
  Intel also has a much broader product line; when people talk about "Intel vs. AMD" they're mostly talking about CPUs, and it would be fairer to compare the revenue only from those parts of the Intel and AMD businesses. Right now it seems that Intel has roughly a 60% market share of x86 CPUs vs. ~40% for AMD. I don't now what that is in terms of $ revenue. Intel was never 8 times bigger; AMD has actually always retained a respectable market share; ~20% market share is nothing to sneer at.
  - tomnipotent 5y ago
    AMD also has GPU, embedded, and custom (like Xbox/PS5). Don't get me wrong, I'm an AMD fan since the day I bought my first Athlon and am happy for their success. Good time to be a customer.
    - arp242 5y ago
      Of course, but Intel has more of it, so if you're comparing CPU revenue you should look only at that part of their businesses.
deleted 5y ago

noahtallen 5y ago

I found it absolutely hilarious that this award is sponsored by Intel! Anyways, love where AMD is going. Super curious to see if their next GPUs will finally give Nvidia a run for their money at the high end.

ur-whale 5y ago
> see if their next GPUs will finally give Nvidia a run for their money at the high end. Even if their hardware catches up with and beats that of NVidia, they will still have a huge problem with the software ecosystem. Everyone who does anything serious with GPGPU and supercomputing is using CUDA, (a proprietary abomination) these days and AMD does not have a competitive product in that space. That said, the software ecosystem around GPUs is an extraordinary mess, and there is therefore a huge opportunity for the company that can fix it. Unfortunately, this is a deep cultural problem: as witnessed by the giant mess that is the Nvidia software ecosystem (nightmarish driver version management, proprietary technology, huge unwieldy binary distribution to install anytime you want to run 20 lines of GPGPU code, lack of properly working and debugging and profiling tools, etc...) companies run by EEs (such as Dr. Su) simply don't have the DNA to produce simple, clean, elegant, working software. The kind of brain it takes to produce cutting edge silicon and the kind of brain it takes to produce cutting edge software are imo simply incompatible.
- imwillofficial 5y ago
  I generally agree. Apple seems to fly in the face of this however. Their silicon story is an interesting one lately
  - leucineleprec0n 5y ago
    It flies and stops halfway in the face. Apple’s developer tool chains (at least, for iOS and the world of mobile apps and games, Metal notwithstanding) are decent, their codebase is at least a cleaner implementation than what Google have with the combined GPL & refactoring nightmare of the Linux kernel & Android (to be solved by my beloved Fuchsia in time, surely) — but it’s not as if Apple are really a shining light on software overall. To be honest, they absolutely suck. C+ tier stuff. iOS background management, iOS & MacOS UI since iOS 7 & Big Chu—Sur respectively, woefully inadequate security defense on all systems, an AWFUL file manager on MacOS dubbed “Finder”, garbage implementation of Bluetooth and WiFi antennae status on control panel, no iOS option for reasonable DPI scaling (zoomed doesn’t count), excessive font smoothing only modifiable via Terminal as of MacOS Big Sur — excessive use of advanced animation and sickening transparency leading to poor performance on hardware that makes Android or Windows fly. Oh, no option to delete all messages at any given time via a simple “select all” button in the edit bar for Messages, nor an ability to export all messages to a fricking plaintext file or HTML. The list continues, and is a long one worthy of a short documentary. Apple excels at a few interface consistencies and at selling premium hardware with high margins in part due to an admittedly deserved proficiency with supply chain consistency & scale, and with convincing customers to pay with their kidneys for marginal upgrades e.g. 400% up charges on RAM and Storage. The M1 is impressive, certainly agree, but it won’t be too long before others catch-up. Still, let’s not get ahead of ourselves about Apple and software prowess. It’s been a long time since I preferred Cupertino’s code to Redmond’s or Mountain View’s.

softfalcon 5y ago

I met her once when I was 9. She’s a really nice and friendly person to talk to. Listened to my brother and I talk about Pokémon for a good 15 minutes at least. Now she’s running AMD, kicking ass and taking names. Pretty frigging cool.

em3rgent0rdr 5y ago
How long ago was that and where?
- softfalcon 5y ago
  I’m ball parking it cause I was a little kid, but roughly 20-ish years ago? Late 90’s to early 2000-something. At one of the Motorola research plants in Arizona. Back when Motorola still made semiconductor and PowerPC chips.
  - weird-eye-issue 5y ago
    You said you met her when you were 9. Assuming you know how old you are now, why do you have to then ballpark the year? Just curious
    - qwertox 5y ago
      No reason why OP should disclose his age.
    - sigg3 5y ago
      Not op, but personally I have to break out the calculator when it comes to my own age. It's like it's a more viscous entity than an integer.
      - cto_of_antifa 5y ago
        Is this a math joke I don't get? How are integers a thick liquid?
      - 5y ago

spoonjim 5y ago

And she did it without being “marketable” which is so often something the market demands of female CEOs.

ur-whale 5y ago
Yup. Surprising: looks like putting someone in charge who actually understands - in depth - how the business and the tech. that powers is actually works instead of random MBA-wielding drones seem to yield good results. And Intel is also finally learning that lesson with their new CEO.
tootahe45 5y ago
I don't think the market demands it, just the media. Ive noticed the feminist media only focus on pretty white women CEOs, even when they are often disastrous for the company (Yahoo). I've been surprised by the lack of reporting about Lisa's success.

blobbers 5y ago

Is "Lu" her nickname? 'Looking back, Lu divides her career path into two parts.' bad copy editor?

stefanfisk 5y ago
Looks completely normal to me, like using "MacArthur" all over the place in https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Douglas_MacArthur https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Douglas_MacArthur.
- lancebeet 5y ago
  That doesn't really seem comparable to me, since her surname is Su and not Lu. It would be more like using "DougArthur" in that article.
  - stefanfisk 5y ago
    wow, I just didn't see what was wrong until you pointed it out that clearly. probably sloppy editing, since the articles uses "Su" aaalmost consistently.
tvphan 5y ago
A lot of people on Reddit call her Su Bae.

dis-sys 5y ago

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Im6xQyglYuU https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Im6xQyglYuU

mastrsushi 5y ago

Mommy Multi-Core

intricatedetail 5y ago

There are probably countless workers behind her who made Ryzen possible, but they don't get awards. Probably just above average salary. I don't get this cult of a person in tech. Has this ever ended well?

ChrisMarshallNY 5y ago

Reminds me of this reporter’s gaffe: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Im6xQyglYuU https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Im6xQyglYuU

cwizou 5y ago

As part of my former job I used to follow AMD very closely and I have to say that while maybe misplaced in some ways, she deserves all the praise she gets and then some. Some context, when she took over, not only was the CPU division in shambles and the product line not that great, but the internal infighting was terrible between the GPU and the CPU division. Most of it was fuelled by the marketing department taking the GPU side. Not only did she had to handle this, but soon enough she had part of the company actively working against her to get her removed and replaced. I can't tell you how many times some very senior AMD people would go to the press and bad mouth her, talking about her incompetence (and I'm putting things mildly), and seeding rumors about her near and ineluctable ousting. Political infighting in a large org is always a thing, but I never noticed anything that publicly overt (at least to the press), prolonged, and acrimonious. She focused a lot on righting the CPU division and getting the trust of key senior people there and in the end, it paid. During that same period, same people from above were seeding rumors that Ryzen was going to be a bust, and the character attacks went up to 11. I remember the first Ryzen press event, and you could see a mix of relief and confidence (I would say that prior to that event, she never appeared confident on stage) that came with it during her presentation. At that time she knew that not only she had a good product line for the next few years, but that the coup attempt would die down. It took some time but those behind the attempts left the company and AMD ended up in a better place. So yep, her resilience always impressed me and she will never get enough credit for it. AMD's turnaround is obviously not just hers, it's shared with many key people (eg. on Zen, Mike Clark, and Keller who - check for the Anandtech interview in another comment [1] - made the battered and bruised teams believe they actually could). But she definitely played a large part in it. A bit before Ryzen was released, I remember casually asking one very senior person on the CPU division what he thought about Lisa. He started talking about the fact that sometimes she sets impossible deadlines (which boss doesn't?), but then he paused and reflected a bit and said "but she listens and understands". Coming from that person, that was about as much praise anyone in management could get. [1] : https://www.anandtech.com/show/16762/an-anandtech-interview-with-jim-keller-laziest-person-at-tesla https://www.anandtech.com/show/16762/an-anandtech-interview-...

lvl100 5y ago

Bronx Science represent!

einpoklum 5y ago

While Lisa Su seems like an impressive person, the linked story is basically a PR piece with a very low signal/noise ratio.