Consolidation continues in the semiconductor industry, redrawing the competitive lines in advanced sectors like 5G on a regular basis. AMD has confirmed that it is buying Xilinx, the leading vendor of field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), for $35bn (see Wireless Watch Issue 841), going head-to-head with Intel (owner of FPGA maker Altera) in high performance computing, 5G, cloud and AI platforms. CEO Lisa Su talked extensively about supercomputer and industrial opportunities, as she discussed the deal on AMD’s earnings call, and also pointed out that Xilinx has strong partnerships with companies in the 5G, smart NIC and industrial segments. She highlighted Xilinx’s contract to supply 5G chips for Samsung and Ericsson but also focused on automotive as a key area…