AMD Invests in BlueStack to Bring Android Apps to Windows Devices

AMD announced just earlier today that it has invested in BlueStack, a company that builds a special software which enables Windows-based devices to run applications designed for Android in a full-screen mode.

The Sunnyvale chip maker said that the two companies will collaborate to optimize the BlueStacks App Player for Windows to run on tablet and notebook PCs powered by AMD accelerated processing units (APUs).

None of the two companies have said if these optimizations also rely on the compute possibilities of the integrated Radeon graphics core used in AMD's APUs, but they did mention that the player will be able to run more than 200,000 apps currently available in the Android Market.

“Bluestacks is a visionary software company that is, seamlessly, making the emerging Android mobile apps market part of the broader computing ecosystem and enhancing such experiences on our award-winning APU platforms,” said Manju Hegde, corporate vice president, AMD Fusion Experience Program. 

“AMD is committed to support such game changing innovators through investment and other activity as we work together to usher in new experiences that allow consumers to enjoy the full capabilities of the brilliant graphics and computing performance enabled by AMD.”

AMD has been pushing quite hard lately to promote its Fusion accelerated processing units that combine the traditional CPU cores with an on-die graphics core based on the Radeon architecture.

Just two days ago, an AMD representative has revealed that the company plans to help game developers to optimize their titles for its APUs, so that integrated graphics would become a "compelling option" for video games.

“AMD’s investment in BlueStacks will help us to create an environment where your favorite apps can be accessed regardless of platform technology, providing greater entertainment and productivity value,” said Rosen Sharma, president and chief executive officer of BlueStacks.

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