Intel: ‘Partnerships are key if we want to scale and accelerate digitization’

Intel is planning to expand its Latin American network of partners in areas related to infrastructure and emerging technologies, notably genAI.

“Partnerships are key if we want to scale and accelerate digitization. We use a lot of open source, open architectures and are always looking for technologies such as artificial intelligence and PCs to be available to partners, and from them to us,” Marcelo Bertolami, Intel’s LatAm regional partners and tech team director, told BNamericas.

One of the focuses on the AI front is Meteor Lake, the new generation of chipsets recently unveiled by Intel and that for the first time comes with built-in AI and GPU capabilities.

In other words, embedded by these chipsets the computer would be able to run generative AI without relying on the cloud or being connected to the internet. 

It is the same bet that Qualcomm has for smartphones.

Intel is already working with PC manufacturing partners, such as Positivo and Dell, to soon launch Meteor Lake in the region.

Bertolami was appointed to the position in February last year, in the midst of a global reorganization process with the aim of providing greater focus to each of the territories in which the company operates.

He is responsible for all regional partnerships in Latin America with segmentation by technical areas: Internet of Things, independent service vendors, and technology, such as cloud, datacenters and PCs.

Intel has a strong focus on partnerships, especially in areas comprising large chains and fragmented ecosystems, such as datacenters, AI, networks, and edge computing.

Independent service vendor partners include multinationals VMware, SAP and Oracle. In terms of integrators, one of Intel's new regional partners in Latin America is Chile-based multinational Sonda.

Intel and Sonda announced the partnership last month, with a focus on the digital transformation of companies in Latin America.

The scope of the agreement made it the first Intel signed with a company from the region, and comes 20 years after it invested in Sonda through Intel Capital, its venture capital division.

The company has also worked directly with the support of integrators at its largest clients: Petrobras, Itaú, América Móvil, MercadoLibre, and Globo, said Bertolami.

In the IoT area, key customers include Digifort, Digicom, Perto, and ISS.

For datacenters, partners include Positivo, Dell, HP, Lenovo, and Supermicro. And in terms of cloud, managed service provider partners include SoftwareOne, Scala24, Rackspace, and Real Cloud.

Intel’s objective of expanding the regional network is to increase the penetration of its products amid growing competition, while also creating joint technological development strategies.

“Brazil is key to this strategy. It's very, very important for Intel. There are 150mn people online on social networks, around 100,000 startups, 70% of these dedicated to cloud, AI, data analytics, etc., 24 unicorns. That's why we have a specialized team in the country and high engagement with partners,” he said.

With 36 years of operation, the Brazilian unit is Intel's oldest in the region, followed by Mexico (30) and Argentina (25).

In Mexico, Intel has a design and validation center for datacenter tech in Guadalajara, and in Costa Rica a PC factory and a service center, in which the company is investing US$1.2bn.

When it comes to ecosystems, Bertolami highlighted the importance of Colombia, Chile, and Peru. Although a major source of tech workers and startups, Argentina has been problematic in terms of importing and exporting inputs, he said.