Intel Set to Buy Havok for $110 Million

Intel announced on Friday that it will acquire game-tool-maker Havok for $110 million, reports Reuters.  Second Life, while not supporting Intel graphics chips, does run on Havok 1 and Linden Lab has said that an upgrade to Havok 4 will be coming soon.  Havok's product line includes tool sets for physics, animation, and character behavior. The company just released Havok 5, but it has seen increased competition from AGEIA, the makers of a combined hardware/software physics acceleration platform. Intel says that Havok will continue "business as usual," but having the hardware developer's  backing can't hurt.

Intel has long been involved in virtual worlds--CTO Justin Rattner will be giving a keynote at the Intel Developer Forum titled "Research and Development: Virtual Worlds – The Rise of the 3D Internet"-- and the company says the Havok will be "a key element of Intel's visual computing and graphics efforts."

In April 2006, Eleanor Wynn, an Intel Social Technology Architect, told 3pointD that a "Second Life underlayer is not out of the question" for Intel's internal 3D collaboration project, Miramar. Owning the physics engine that Second Life runs on might make that more likely.

Intel To Acquire Havok

SANTA CLARA, Calif., Sept. 14, 2007 – Intel Corporation today announced it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Havok Inc., the leading provider of interactive software and services used by digital media creators in the game and movie industries. Havok will become a wholly owned subsidiary of Intel.

The acquisition will enable developers in the digital animation and game communities to take advantage of Intel's innovation and technology leadership in the creation of digital media.

"Havok is a proven leader in physics technology for gaming and digital content, and will become a key element of Intel's visual computing and graphics efforts," said Renee J. James, vice president and general manager of Intel's Software and Solutions Group. "Havok will operate its business as usual, which will allow them to continue developing products that are offered across all platforms in the industry."

Havok's modular suite of software development tools is used by game and digital animation creators to build realistic video games for all types of hardware and digitally animated movies. The company's combination of superior technology and dedication to customers has led to its technology being used in more than 150 of the world's best-known game titles, including "BioShock," "Stranglehold," "Halo 2," "Half Life 2," "The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion," "Crackdown," "Lost Planet: Extreme Condition," "MotorStorm" and "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix." In addition, Havok products have been used to create special effects in movies such as "Poseidon," "The Matrix," "Troy," "Kingdom of Heaven" and "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory."

"This is a great fit for Havok products, customers and employees," said Havok CEO David O'Meara. "Intel's scale of technology investment and customer reach enable Havok with opportunities to grow more quickly into new market segments with new products than we could have done organically. We believe the winning combination is Havok's technology and customer know-how with Intel's scale. I am excited to be part of this next phase of Havok's growth."

Havok was founded in 1998 in Dublin, Ireland, and has offices in San Francisco, San Antonio, Stockholm, Calcutta, Munich and Tokyo. The company will be a wholly owned Intel subsidiary and continue to operate as an independent business working with its customers in developing digital media content. Terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

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