10 companies buy 35 percent of server processors

Intel is the largest server processor maker, with a marketshare of close to 98 percent in the x86 server market. AMD is trying to disrupt this market with its Zen-based EPYC chips but both companies may soon see the loss of several big buyers.

A new NY Times piece highlights that just 10 companies buy about 35 percent of all server processors that are sold around the world. These companies are so large that they can save a lot of money by making their own chips, tailored to their specific needs. And this is exactly what's going on, with firms like Amazon and Google making homegrown chips. This enables them to lower the cost of service, and also gives them more power over CPU makers like Intel and AMD.

Amazon executives believe the chip, which was designed to be more energy efficient, will help reduce the cost of electrical power in its data centers. It said it was offering a cloud-computing service that would allow business customers to use its new chip. The cost of the service could be 45 percent lower than other options.

And when Amazon buys chips from other companies, a homegrown option gives it even more sway over prices. “They can now say to Intel, ‘We will just move the workloads to other chips,’” Mr. Feldman said.

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