AMD has been accepted by Intel to provide inputs for the final 3GIO spec and this month was admitted as the first "key contributor" in the 3GIO alliance, both firms said.

AMD won't be admitted to the cozy 3GIO working group of Intel, IBM, Compaq, Dell and Microsoft that is drafting the preliminary I/O successor spec to PCI-X. But AMD's status gives it more influence than its membership in the PCI SIG that will finally vote on the final 3G IO status that emerges, said Chris Neuts, AMD manager of technology evangelism.

As a PCI SIG member, AMD even voted this month to approve Intel's proposal to draft a final 3GIO spec for review next year, he added.

The peaceful co-existence got off to a good start at the Intel Developers Forum this week as the AMD-initiated HyperTransport Consortium had a hospitality suite with Intel's acquiescence. API Networks, Concord, Mass., was demonstrating its HyperTransport bridge chips on the IDF exhibition floor, while Intel touted 3GIO promotion at its booth.

Bob Gregory, Intel director of strategic planning for the Desktop Products Group, agreed that the two bitter processor competitors intend to work closely together on the separate I/O standards. He foresees future PCs and servers having both interfaces on a platform. "We now want to make sure both interoperate and work together," he said.

When Intel pushed 3GIO last month to get the PCI SIG to draft a preliminary spec, many analysts and industry officials thought this was an gauntlet thrown at the feet of the HyperTransport Consortium, spearheaded by AMD. But Gregory said Intel has no intention of trying to make 3GIO push HyperTransport out of the I/O interface space.

"Each has its strengths to serve different segments of the market. There is some overlap in chip-to-chip I/O interface, but we prefer to look at this as complementary rather than competitive," he added.

AMD's Neuts responded that HyperTransport is already being implemented today and will be well established by the time the final 3GIO spec is approved and the first systems are deployed in 2003. However, far from trying to use its head start to push out 3GIO, HyperTransport is looking for the other I/O standard to meet the high-speed interface requirements for PC subsystems that the AMD-promoted standard is reluctant to tackle.

For instance, Neuts said HyperTransport shies away from trying to qualify the myriad add-on cards that support PCs. "We don't have the resources for this task. It is something Intel and 3GIO are well positioned to handle. They traditionally deal with the vast numbers of add-on card vendors and can bring these vendors into a high-speed serial I/O interface. But then HyperTransport would interface with these 3GIO add-on cards at other PC system levels."

Both Intel and AMD believe there will no great difficulty in getting their two I/O standards to work together on the same platform and between platforms. "HyperTransport and 3GIO reach evolved from the current PCI-X interface. That makes for a lot of commonality already," said AMD's Neuts.

Both Intel and AMD agreed that the new I/O d??tente marks a major shift away from previous business models that tried to lock in OEMs to a company's particular standard. "We are interested in selling processors. By working together rather than fighting each other on I/O standards, we can stimulate the market and then compete vigorously to sell our respective processors," Neuts agreed.

The I/O detente follows a new Intel acceptance of working with different peripheral and wireless standards besides its own preferred formats. As previously reported, Intel officials now envision the firm's promoted USB 2.0 standard working with IEEE 1394, and IEEE 20.11 with Bluetooth, perhaps on the same platform.