For the longest time Advanced Micro Devices was relegated to the status of an also ran in the processor business, often losing out to Intel Corp, even though the company consistently brought to market some decent products. But hopefully the new Optreon will change that. The company is finding that customers are willing to use its 64-bit processors to power clusters and use them as a replacement for high-end super computers. CNet News.Com is reporting that IBM is launching a new Opteron powered server.

bq. Opteron-based eServer 325 on Wednesday, said it will deliver 1,058 copies of the rack-mounted machine to Japan’s National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology for use in a computing cluster. The cluster will aid in research on subjects such as biology and materials sciences.

In a chat with AMD CEO Hector Ruiz, I had asked him if this was one way for the company to establish its street cred. He agreed and I think as the company shows that it can handle the toughest tasks, it will start to chip away at some of the so called brand advantages of Intel. I think the company needs to establish a marketing program which is akin to Apple’s G5 campaign. Humanize the amazing potential of its chips, and how they are serving the mankind. violins please!

bq. Dawning Information Industry Corp. plans to build a 2000 processor, 10 teraflop Opteron supercomputer. Also, Cray Computer will use 10,000 Opterons in a supercomputer, dubbed Red Storm, for the U.S. government’s Sandia National Laboratories. The computer is expected to yield 40 teraflops when it is completed next year, Cray has said.

This might be the catalyst that AMD needs in order to get its mojo back. Mr. Ruiz, we are all rooting for you