It’s easy to forget how big of a company Intel really is. Most people often see Big Blue as the de-facto chipmaker, and that’s about it. On the contrary, Intel is invested across a wide range of segments. Other than processors, the core sectors include Autonomous Driving, Internet of Things (IoT), NAND memory and Data Centers.
Amid increasing competition in the microprocessor market and a resurgent AMD, this has allowed Intel to stay afloat even though all its peers saw double-digit declines in 2019. You might remember that at the company’s last fiscal reporting, CEO Bob Swan reported an all-time high revenue, beating expectations by nearly $1 billion. Considering that Intel has been rapidly losing market share in the consumer CPU space and facing unprecedented competition in the server segment over the last year, this is puzzling to say the least.
So where did all that extra revenue come from? Well, that’s all thanks to Intel’s broad portfolio. The most promising ones include:
- The NAND flash market (SSD business) where Intel was the only Foundry to see a profit, as both Samsung and Hk Hynix reported double-digit losses.
- Mobileye, an Israeli subsidiary of Intel that focuses on Autonomous Driving grew by a huge 25.9%.
- The Data Center Group (DCG) which accounts for 33% of Intel’s total revenue also grew by a healthy 2.1% in 2019. That may seem like a small figure in hindsight, but let’s keep in mind that this is a $200 billion company we’re talking about here.
- Lastly, the IOTG, one of the fastest-growing divisions also saw a revenue spike of nearly 11% in 2019. IOTG is responsible for 5% of the company’s total revenue.
Back in 2014, when the situation was much more relaxed, Intel started to expand its portfolio with forays in various up and coming segments such as Mobileye and IOTG. It was this foresight that kept the company in the green amidst falling stocks and an industry-wide decline.
