The two largest PowerPC chip vendors have announced a cooperative agreement. IBM and Freescale have pledged to create a common Power ISA (instruction set architecture), and to collaborate on technology, infrastructure, and marketing programs aimed at driving the architecture into a broader range of applications.

Traditionally, IBM has used the PowerPC architecture in server and personal computing applications, while Freescale has pioneered the architecture in embedded applications, such as networking and telecommunications equipment, automotive telematics, and industrial control. Now, the companies say they will work together more closely to drive the architecture deeper into consumer electronics, industrial, automotive, enterprise systems, telecommunications, and supercomputers.

News of expanded cooperation between IBM and Freescale was announced at today's International Solid-State Circuits Conference (ISSCC).

The companies will cooperate through the IBM-sponsored Power.org community, which Freescale will join at the “founding member” level. IBM launched Power.org in December of 2004, eight months after announcing a “Linux-like” open governance model for Power. Power.org comprises chip vendors, software companies, Linux distributors, and tools vendors, and it also recently gained a venture capital advisory board.

Within Power.org, Freescale will join IBM in forming a Power Architecture Advisory Council (PAAC) charged with managing “the architectural roadmap and alignment for Power Architecture technology,” with the goal of creating a “seamless, compatible instruction set architecture designed to accommodate platforms scaling from low-cost, high-volume consumer electronics systems to high-performance enterprise and industrial applications.”

Dr. John E. Kelly III, SVP of technology at IBM, stated, “Innovation is no longer centered around the PC. Architectures need to be expanded beyond that. Power Architecture technology is at the forefront of the world's most powerful supercomputer, enterprise systems, automobiles, and all of the leading video game platforms.”

Freescale CEO Michel Mayer stated, “We will be combining IBM's leadership in high performance computing with Freescale's leadership in embedded computing. As allied leaders and founding members of Power.org, [Freescale has] the technical and financial resources to drive the proliferation of Power Architecture microprocessor-based platforms throughout the consumer-driven, networked world.”

 
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