AMD Renews Commitment to OpenGL API for Streamlined Application Development

- Support for OpenGL 3.0 and new AMD extensions now available, OpenGL 3.1 support to follow -

SUNNYVALE, Calif.-AMD (NYSE: AMD) today announced its renewed commitment to the OpenGL 3D graphics API by offering OpenGL 3.0 support in ATI FirePro™ drivers. OpenGL is a leading environment for developing interactive 3D graphics applications. AMD also announced the publication of high value OpenGL extensions backed by a promise of future support for the recently-announced OpenGL 3.1.

OpenGL helps foster innovation and speed application development by incorporating a broad set of rendering, texture mapping, special effects, and other powerful visualization functions. Developers can leverage the power of OpenGL across all popular desktop and workstation platforms, ensuring wide application deployment.

AMD’s commitment to OpenGL as an extensible graphics API is exemplified by its release of OpenGL 3.0 drivers, its commitment to supporting OpenGL 3.1, and its innovations with OpenGL extensions such as AMD_vertex_shader_tessellator and AMD_GPU_association. These unique extensions enable improved performance scaling and parallel processing with multiple GPUs and enhanced scene realism through increased geometry detail.

“AMD’s implementation of OpenGL 3.0 demonstrates our commitment to delivering continued support for the OpenGL API, which is the API of choice for many CAD, digital content creation and scientific application providers,” said Janet Matsuda, senior director, AMD Professional Graphics. “AMD has long been an active participant in OpenGL API standards work. Extensions, such as tessellation, allow developers to take full advantage of powerful ATI FirePro graphics accelerators that provide performance, stability and visionary innovation for graphics professionals. We look forward to future enhancements that will be available in OpenGL 3.1 and beyond.”

“As a graphics toolkit provider, Redway3d is committed to offering the best 2D and 3D performance to its customers in addition to product quality and stability that fulfill long life maintenance requirements. AMD’s OpenGL extensions such as tessellation help Redway3d support that customer commitment. The OpenGL 3.0 architecture on graphics accelerators such as ATI FirePro creates very promising value potential for the RED engine SDK with zero migration effort,” said Lionel Schmitt, CEO for Redway3d.

Supported now with ATI Catalyst™ version 8.583 graphics drivers for ATI FirePro, at http://ati.amd.com/support/driver.html, OpenGL 3.0 marks its own milestone of re-invigoration of this cross-platform 2D and 3D graphics API. OpenGL 3.1 is the newest revision of this industry standard and was announced on March 24, 2009. In upcoming ATI Catalyst software releases AMD plans to continue to expand its support for extensions targeted at future versions of OpenGL, including OpenGL 3.1.