As part of the Acceleration Economy AI Industry Accelerators series, showcasing individuals in vendor, partner, and customer organizations who are driving AI innovation and adoption, we’re highlighting the work of Sandra Rivera.
Current Role
Sandra Rivera is the CEO of Altera, a spin-off of leading semiconductor company Intel. Altera specializes in field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) — circuits that enable customers to reconfigure hardware after it has been manufactured. They can be used in data centers, communications, defense, and more.
An analysis on an IBM tech blog makes the connection between AI and FPGAs clear: “While general-purpose GPUs cannot be reprogrammed, the FPGA’s reconfigurability allows for specific application optimization, leading to reduced latency and power consumption. This key difference makes FPGAs particularly useful for real-time processing in AI applications and prototyping new projects.”
Rivera took the helm at Altera in late 2023, after it was spun off from Intel nine years after being purchased. In early 2024, Rivera predicted an expansion in Altera’s FPGA market, anticipating it could reach $55 billion in the coming years, an increase from the current $8 billion to $10 billion.
“As customers deal with increasingly complex technological challenges and work to differentiate themselves from their competitors and accelerate time to value, we have an opportunity to reinvigorate the FPGA market,” she said.
Educational/Professional Background
The daughter of Colombian immigrants, Rivera grew up in New Jersey and earned a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from Penn State University. Prior to joining Intel, Rivera co-founded and was president of The CTI Authority; led the computer telephony division at Catalyst Telecom; and served as director of sales at Dialogic.
She joined Intel in 2001 and steadily climbed the ranks. From 2019 to 2021, Rivera served as Intel’s chief people officer, managing global HR operations, and earlier, from 2017 to 2019, she was the general manager of its Network Platforms Group, spearheading network infrastructure transformation and establishing Intel as a leader in network logic silicon.
Starting in 2021, Rivera led Intel’s Data Center and AI Group, which developed Intel Xeon processors, Intel Max and Flex series graphic processors, Intel Gaudi AI accelerators, and FPGA products. Recognized by TIME magazine in 2023 as one of the most influential figures in AI, Rivera is on the Equinix board and the University of California, Berkeley’s engineering advisory board.
” . . Know you’re good enough and apply for the job even if you have doubts,” she offers as career advice on LinkedIn.
| Title | Chief Executive Officer, Altera, an Intel Company |
| Previous titles | Chief People Officer, Intel; President, The CIT Authority |
| Key AI Initiatives | Leads Altera’s push to be at the forefront of FPGAs |
| AI Passions | FPGAs, chips for small to medium-sized AI models |
| In Her Own Words | “Anything anyone talks about right now is Generative AI and Large Language Models (LLMs), but AI is so much more than that.” |
AI Projects and Passions
Currently, Rivera is focused on her work with FPGAs: “[Altera’s] goal is to be the world’s #1 FPGA provider by delivering leading-edge programmable solutions that scale — from the cloud to embedded applications — based on our customers’ requirements.”
FPGAs, she notes, can have a profound impact on AI: “AI is a transformative technology. It is not a new technology, but the advancements have accelerated rapidly in recent years . . . FPGAs are a compelling computing platform in terms of power, performance, and cost efficiencies, so AI represents a significant expansion opportunity.”
As the leader of Intel’s Data Center and AI Group in 2021, Rivera oversaw the rollout of its Gaudi AI accelerator chips. The company hopes the Gaudi3, launching Q3 2024, will keep it in the forefront of AI chip competition. Spheron writes, “…Gaudi combines power and efficiency to enhance AI acceleration significantly. It sets new industry benchmarks and enables the creation of innovative AI and ML [machine learning] applications.”
In this role, Rivera also strives to set Intel further apart from NVIDIA by emphasizing that AI isn’t just about LLMs or GPUs. Intel’s CPUs, particularly Xeon processors, excel in handling data before AI models are trained, making them a strong alternative. Intel also focuses on smaller AI models where, the company maintains, its CPUs offer better value than NVIDIA’s GPUs. Instead of directly challenging NVIDIA, Intel’s strategy centers on openness, supporting the ecosystem, and making AI development more accessible, which it believes will attract customers in the long run.
Latest Intel and Altera News
Intel recently faced a major drop in its stock price due to a reduction in its second-quarter revenue and earnings guidance. The company is reducing its worforce by 15% in response. It has a long history as a chip industry innovator but it faces tough competition from NVIDIA, even with all the new opportunities made possible by AI.
Altera reported a year-over-year drop in Q1 revenue of $342 million, largely due to inventory adjustments following the supply shortages of 2022 and 2023.
Big Quote
“There’s risk involved in any new endeavor, so I learned to see setbacks or disappointments as learning moments. I never lose. I either win or I learn. If a project or initiative did not go as planned, I consider what I can learn from it.”
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