Intel Capital opens $300m Ultrabook development fund

Giant vendor eager to harness the creative juices of the industry for next-generation personal computing vision

Intel has ploughed $300m (£186m) into a dedicated Ultrabook Fund to speed up the development of next-generation personal computing.

The money, provided by Intel Capital, is aimed at driving innovation in this new category of devices – described as a combination of the performance and capabilities of today’s laptops with tablet-like features and a longer battery life.

Intel hopes the fund, which will be invested over the next three to four years, will create a cycle of innovation and system capabilities for this new category of mobile devices.

Arvind Sodhani, president of Intel Capital, said: “Ultrabook devices are poised to be an important area for innovation in the $261bn global computer industry.

“The Intel Capital Ultrabook Fund will focus on investing in companies building technologies that will help revolutionise the computing experience and morph today’s mobile computers into the next ‘must-have’ device.”

Intel has a three-phase strategy to realise its vision. The first will kick off with the launch of Intel’s second-generation Core processors. Systems based on these chips will be available in Q4.

Second is the launch of Intel’s next-generation Ivy Bridge processor, which is due to launch in 2012.

Finally, Intel’s planned 2013 product set, codenamed Haswell, is the third step in the Ultrabook device progression and is expected to reduce power consumption to half the thermal design point for current microprocessors.

Lenovo is one vendor that has been working closely with Intel as an OEM partner for the Ultrabook concept.

Peter Hortensius, product group president at Lenovo, said: “Ultrabook takes the best technologies and marries them with sleeker designs and extraordinarily long battery life for a new kind of computing experience. This new type of personal computing aligns with our continual focus on engineering innovative laptop solutions that push the boundaries of mobility.”