A struggling AMD cancels its 2008 Global Vision Conference

I received word this afternoon that Advanced Micro Devices canceled its biennial Global Vision Conference, which was set for this October in Dana Point, Calif.

The 2006 AMD Global Vision Conference, held in Los Angeles, was incredibly rewarding. It provided a too-rare opportunity to clear my head, meet new people, and think big-picture thoughts about the future of technology.

At the Sept. 2006 event, I talked to some outstanding people, including cycling legend Lance Armstrong, geneticist James Watson, and MIT Media Lab guru Nicholas Negroponte, and got to hang out with futurist (and fellow ham-radio operator) Paul Saffo.

The most inspirational talk was by Col. Geoffrey Ling, MD (pictured), who described new DARPA medical technologies for treating battlefield wounds and helping severely injured soldiers return to a normal life.

The 2008 conference has been highlighted on my calendar all year, and I was treating it as the focus of my own personal “think week.”

The program was packed with speakers like Craig Mundie, chief research officer at Microsoft, Rob Manning, the flight systems chief engineer for the Mars Pathfinder mission, and Neil Turok, the chair of mathematical physics at Cambridge University. I planned to swap notes with Jim Kelly, managing editor at Time Inc., and David Kirkpatrick, senior editor, Internet and Technology, at Fortune magazine.

Alas, it’s not to be. Here’s the bad news, sent by an AMD executive:

Dear Alan,

I regret to report that AMD has made the decision not to hold the AMD Global Vision Conference until further notice. Thank you for taking the time to make GVC work on your calendar. My colleagues and I appreciate your energy and enthusiasm around the conference. We are truly disappointed that we will not see you in Dana Point this October.

However, this is the right decision for AMD at this time. AMD management is focusing all resources and energy on a number of key initiatives critical to the company’s success. An event of this magnitude requires a tremendous amount of energy from our executives and partners. Consequently, we are going to reconsider holding GVC when AMD executives can give it the attention it demands.

On behalf of my colleagues at AMD, I thank you again for your support and understanding.

Big bummer.