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Discount Codes o Razer Promo Codes o Anycubic Discount codes + Software Coupons o View Software Coupons o Bitdefender Coupons o Simplisafe Coupons o MacPaw Coupons o Squarespace Coupon Codes + Gaming Coupons o View Gaming Coupons o Kinguin Discount Codes o Loaded Discount Codes o Logitech G Promo Codes o SteelSeries Coupons Premium Forums Don't miss these 5800X3D CPUs AMD's legacy Ryzen 7 5800X3D chips now sell for up to $800, more than a new 9800X3D Intel Semiconductors Intel's Fab 52 is bigger and better equipped than TSMC's Arizona facilities AMD CPUs AMD publishes first Zen 6 document detailing ground-up redesign on 2nm process node Ryzen 9000 CPU CPUs AMD's upcoming Ryzen 7 9850X3D spotted at Swiss and U.S. retailers AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D CPUs How to choose a CPU - A guide to picking the right processor for your PC Amazon Web Services CPUs Amazon unveils 192-core Graviton5 CPU with massive 180 MB L3 cache in tow SK hynix HBM4 chips DRAM On the cutting edge: How SK hynix's history 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Semiconductors Nvidia and TSMC produce the first Blackwell wafer made in the U.S. TSMC Semiconductors Semiconductor industry enters unprecedented 'giga cycle' as AI infrastructure spending reshapes demand, says report Best CPU Prices Header Image CPUs CPU Price Index 2025: The cheapest price on every PC processor today Trending * CES 2026 * RAM Shortage * Last Minute Gift Ideas * TH Poem * Steam Machine * FSR Redstone * Intel 18A * Win 10 EOL * Panther Lake 1. PC Components 2. CPUs AMD first entered the CPU market with reverse-engineered Intel 8080 clone 50 years ago -- the Am9080 cost 50 cents apiece to make, but sold for $700 News By Mark Tyson published 25 October 2025 In 1975, AMD could make these processors for 50 cents and sell them for $700, providing a great financial springboard to establish the company in PC CPU making. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here's how it works. AMD AM9080ADC / C8080A CPU (Image credit: Photographer: Dirk Oppelt, CPU-Collection.de) Share Share by: * Copy link * Facebook * X * Whatsapp * Reddit * Flipboard Share this article Join the conversation Follow us Add us as a preferred source on Google The chip which paved the way for AMD's illustrious future, eventually creating some of the best CPUs we've ever tested, entered mass production 50 years ago. AMD's Am9080 had something of a shady origin, as it was a reverse-engineered and cloned Intel 8080. However, due to the importance of second-sourcing among organizations that would end up buying boatloads of 8080 microprocessors (e.g., the military), Intel and AMD eventually reached a licensing agreement, and the rest, as they say, is history. Copycat origin The Am9080 is the result of some very difficult-sounding, yet derivative, work. In the summer of 1973, during their last day working at Xerox, Ashawna Hailey, Kim Hailey, and Jay Kumar took detailed photos of an Intel 8080 pre-production sample, says Wikipedia. Armed with approximately 400 detailed images, the trio managed to draft schematic and logic diagrams and then hawked them around Silicon Valley to see if anyone was interested. You may like * Intel 4004 processor CPU collector exposes microscopic insides of Intel's revolutionary 4004 chip * New Intel 8008 die shot CPU collector stitches 216 micrographs to create high resolution die shot of the legendary i8008 * F-14 Tomcat The MP944 was the 'real' world's first microprocessor, but it was top secret for nearly 30 years AMD took the bait, as you may have guessed, and thought the processor could be useful to run on the N-channel MOS process it had just developed. Some sources suggest that initial runs of the Am9080 were sold by AMD in 1974 -- the same year Intel debuted the processor commercially. However, it would not be until 1975 that AMD marketed and mass-produced the Am9080. Made for 50 cents, sold for $700 Pondering the information we have about how much AMD could manufacture the Am9080 for and how much they could sell it for, mass-producing these chips was a great foundation and business-building enterprise. Various sources indicate that a single Am9080 processor cost AMD only 50 cents to make (100 per wafer), yet it could sell them to military customers for $700 each. Agreement with Intel In 1976, AMD was presented with another great opportunity to profit from its clone of Intel's 8080. Sidestepping interminable legal wrangling, AMD grabbed the chance to sign a cross-licensing agreement with Intel, granting them authorization to become a 'second source.' This wasn't done out of the goodness of Intel's heart, of course. Some lucrative contracts (e.g., military, again) required key components to have second sources. So AMD and Intel inked a deal, which meant AMD paid Intel $25,000 on signing and $75,000 per year for licensing. The deal also released both parties from liability for past infringements. Stay On the Cutting Edge: Get the Tom's Hardware Newsletter Get Tom's Hardware's best news and in-depth reviews, straight to your inbox. [ ][ ]Contact me with news and offers from other Future brands[ ]Receive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsors[Sign me up] By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over. WikiChip (linked top) notes the agreement would become the foundation for important future accords between the chipmaking rivals, notably the expanded agreement in 1982, which allowed AMD to make its own x86 PC processors. AMD's first chip under the expanded agreement would be its Am286 (1982), a licensed version of the Intel 80286. AM9080 die shot (Image credit: Via WikiChip) Am9080 variants ran at up to 4.0 MHz AMD produced many variants of the Am9080 to propel its chip-making business forward. Of the 28 versions WikiChip lists, clock frequencies range from 2.083 to 4.0 MHz, and min/max operating temperatures range from models with a modest 0-70 degrees Celsius operating range, to the MIL-STD-883 compliant 'AM9080ADM' (for example), which was capable of computing in environments as cold as -70 to as hot as 125 degrees Celsius. Am9080 chips had a significantly smaller die than the Intel 8080 that they copied. AMD's more advanced and compact N-channel MOS fabrication process made this possible. Like now, the more advanced semiconductor process also enabled higher clocks. Intel's 8080 processor SKUs were never produced with clock speeds above 3.125 MHz. Google Preferred Source Follow Tom's Hardware on Google News, or add us as a preferred source , to get our latest news, analysis, & reviews in your feeds. TOPICS AMD Intel See all comments (16) Mark Tyson Mark Tyson Social Links Navigation News Editor Mark Tyson is a news editor at Tom's Hardware. He enjoys covering the full breadth of PC tech; from business and semiconductor design to products approaching the edge of reason. 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'This memory situation is a multi-year problem,' says Maingear CEO Transistor chip being put on a circuit board Trump administration announces new tariffs on Chinese chips and electronic components [ ] 16 Comments Comment from the forums * Dr3ams I remember seeing AMD's "catch the wave" commercials on TV (1980). HneTpXNhR64 Reply * Misgar I swapped the 8086 in a PC and installed the "faster" NEC V30. . https://www.cpu-world.com/CPUs/V30/ Reply * Scooter70 That's a hell of a profit margin. Made for 50 cents and sold for 700 bucks. Reply * TechieTwo I'm doubting that AMD was selling the early Am9080 chips for $700 each when their I286/I386 chips sold for less than $100 U.S. retail and considerably less wholesale - just like Intel's chips - some of which AMD produced for Intel at the time. Reply * SunMaster Misgar said: I swapped the 8086 in a PC and installed the "faster" NEC V30. . https://www.cpu-world.com/CPUs/V30/ NEC v20 and v30s was great replacements in the early days. Reply * SunMaster TechieTwo said: I'm doubting that AMD was selling the early Am9080 chips for $700 each when their I286/I386 chips sold for less than $100 U.S. retail and considerably less wholesale - just like Intel's chips - some of which AMD produced for Intel at the time. This is 10 years+ earlier Reply * SomeoneElse23 Scooter70 said: That's a hell of a profit margin. Made for 50 cents and sold for 700 bucks. I'm assuming that's $0.50 production cost, disregarding the upfront R&D costs? Reply * hwertz So my Google-fu is strong, I thought 'who knows how much military markup is, maybe the rest of these sold for like $1.50'. I finally found a reference indicating the NON-military model sold for half the cost, $350.. Still an extremely healthy markup. Reply * zpekic In the 70-ies, AMD also dominated the bit-slice market which was used to back then for building high-performance custom CPUs and controllers, in bi-polar / TTL which could be clocked up to 10MHz (2-3x faster than NMOS at the time). AMD documented how to create such faster Am9080, and the level of techical detail (complete microcode and schematics) was so impressive and accurate that i could code it almost verbatim into working FPGA version. Reply * SirStephenH Various sources indicate that a single Am9080 processor cost AMD only 50 cents to make (100 per wafer), yet it could sell them to military customers for $700 each. The kind of mark-up that would make Apple jealous. Reply * View All 16 Comments Show more comments Tom's Hardware is part of Future US Inc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site. 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