Rumor: AGEIA Could Have Been Acquired

Since AGEIA’s PhysX PPU first hit the market, there was instant speculation with regards to how quick they’d be acquired, any by whom. After all, it would be a mighty challenge to develop, market and sell dedicated PPU units by the lonesome. Back in November, AMD’s Richard Huddy mentioned that they’d consider a purchase… if the price were right and, you know, they actually had the money to do so. But despite AMD’s finances, a purchase would have actually made a lot of sense, if only to combat the recent purchase of software-based Havok, made by Intel.

The rumors haven’t really stopped since then, and Fudo has now kick-started the mill with a hunch that AGEIA has just been acquired, but by who, no one knows. He does mention, however, that it’s most certainly not AMD, but could either be Intel, NVIDIA, or another potential buyer with deep pockets.

If in the wee chance it happens to be Intel, then they have bought themselves into instant domination, since there is no real competition in the hardware or software physics world. Havok, AGEIA and Larrabee all under one roof would put them in an incredible spot to meld future game development. NVIDIA would be another likely candidate, however. AGEIA’s assets would fit well with their Tesla platform, and eventually, their consumer graphic cards. Even if AGEIA has not been purchased, I think many will agree that it’s only a matter of time.

Source: Fudzilla