Xilinx CEO: Despite headwinds, the strategy is on track
In an interview with ZDNet this evening, programmable chip maker Xilinx's CEO, Victor Peng, said the main takeaway from the company's fiscal Q2 report this afternoon was that the strategy the company has been pursuing remains on track and that results in its market are playing out as expected.
"Despite various headwinds, broadly speaking, everything is really tracking," said Peng. "We are very confident that the strategy we launched when I took over is still holding up really strongly despite all these challenges.
Enumerating the various bright spots, Peng said the company expects its data center business will see double-digit revenue growth for the full fiscal year ending in March.
Asked why data center does well, Peng said the company "has always had great engagements" with customers, "and great wins," and that "this is not surprising, this is something we have worked very hard to achieve."
Peng said investors should focus on the year-to-year improvements in data center, because individual quarterly results for that category may be "bursty" or "lumpy."
In 5G wireless networking, Peng pointed out that the company's RF chip is being deployed in North America in spectrum bands below 6 gigahertz, the "sweet spot," he said. Xilinx is also on track to release its Versal chip with Samsung Electronics, he said.
Even parts of the company's business that haven't recovered to their levels prior to the pandemic show signs of strengthening, said Peng. "Hopefully that will continue," he said.
As far as the risk of spreading trade bans against China by the U.S., or a Chinese retaliation, Peng said, "I don't want to get into too much speculation, but Huawei was one of our top customers and now it's zero," observed Peng, referring to the Chinese maker of communications equipment and smartphones that has been the subject of an embargo by the U.S. Department of Commerce.
"I won't tell you in a worst-case scenario we won't still have more exposure, but we certainly are reduced."
Added Peng, "Let's hope we don't have all-out craziness in terms of regulation," he added.
Asked about rumors of AMD deal talks, Peng replied that he does not comment on rumors and speculation.