Intel 2007 Annual Report Download - page 13

Table of Contents
Our products typically are produced at multiple Intel facilities at various sites around the world, or by subcontractors who have
multiple facilities. However, some products are produced in only one Intel or subcontractor facility, and we seek to implement
actions and plans to reduce the exposure that would result from a disruption at any such facility. See “Risk Factors” in Part I,
Item 1A of this Form 10-K.
Research and Development
We are committed to investing in world-class technology development, particularly in the area of the design and manufacture
of integrated circuits. Research and development (R&D) expenditures in 2007 were $5.8 billion ($5.9 billion in fiscal year
2006 and $5.1 billion in fiscal year 2005).
Our R&D activities are directed toward developing the technology innovations that we believe will deliver our next generation
of products and platforms, which will in turn enable new form factors and new usage models for businesses and consumers.
Our R&D activities range from design and development of products to developing and refining manufacturing processes, as
well as researching future technologies and products.
We are focusing our R&D efforts on advanced computing, communications, and wireless technologies as well as energy
efficiency by developing new microarchitectures, advancing our silicon manufacturing process technology, delivering the next
generation of microprocessors and chipsets, improving our platform initiatives, and developing software solutions and tools to
support our technologies. Our R&D efforts enable new levels of performance and address areas such as scalability for multi-
core architectures, system manageability and security, energy efficiency, digital content protection, ease of use, and new
communications capabilities. In the area of wireless communications, our initiatives focus on delivering the technologies that
will enable improved wireless capabilities, including expanding and proliferating WiMAX technologies and products.
As part of our R&D efforts, we plan to introduce a new microarchitecture for our mobile, desktop, and Intel Xeon processors
approximately every two years and ramp the next generation of silicon process technology in the intervening years. We refer
to this as our “tick-tock” technology development cadence. Our leadership in silicon technology has enabled us to make
“Moore’s Law” a reality. Moore’s Law predicted that transistor density on integrated circuits would double about every two
years. Our leadership in silicon technology has also helped to expand on the advances anticipated by Moore
’
s Law by bringing
new capabilities into silicon and producing new products and platforms optimized for a wider variety of applications. In 2007,
we started manufacturing microprocessors on our new 45nm Hi-k metal gate silicon technology, and we expect to introduce a
new microarchitecture on 45nm process technology in 2008. We are currently developing 32nm process technology, our next-
generation process technology, and expect to begin manufacturing products using that technology in 2009.
Our R&D model is based on a global organization that emphasizes a collaborative approach in identifying and developing new
technologies, leading standards initiatives, and influencing regulatory policy to accelerate the adoption of new technologies.
Our R&D initiatives are performed by various business groups within the company, and we centrally manage key cross-
business group product initiatives to align and prioritize our R&D activities across these groups. In addition, we may augment
our R&D initiatives by investing in companies or entering into agreements with companies that have similar R&D focus areas.
For example, we have an agreement with Micron for joint development of NAND flash memory technologies.
We also work with a worldwide network of academic, government, and industry researchers, scientists, and engineers in the
computing and communications fields. Our network of technology professionals allows us, as well as others in our industry, to
benefit from development initiatives in a variety of areas, eventually leading to innovative technologies for users. We believe
that we are well positioned in the technology industry to help drive innovation, foster collaboration, and promote industry
standards that will yield innovative and improved technologies for users.
Employees
In September 2006, we announced a restructuring plan that has resulted in headcount reductions, primarily through workforce
reductions, attrition, and targeted business divestitures. See “Results of Operations” within “Management’s Discussion and
Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operation” in Part II, Item 7 of this Form 10-K
for further details regarding our
restructuring actions. As of December 29, 2007, we had approximately 86,300 employees worldwide, with more than 50% of
these employees located in the U.S. Worldwide, we had approximately 94,100 employees as of December 30, 2006 and
99,900 as of December 31, 2005.
8