Inside Intel: Upgrade Your Life Visit

by Lori Cunningham

I have just returned from a  2 1/2 day trip to Santa Clara, CA, a short jaunt from Los Angeles by plane.  Intel invited me to attend their “Upgrade Your Life” event at their headquarters with 13 other bloggers.

I was looking forward to learning more about Intel’s innovation, which really impressed me when I saw their booth at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) earlier this year.  Intel doesn’t just make computer chips, they innovate and forge new product categories, products, even industries.

Thanks to Intel’s hospitality, the first night all of the bloggers had the opportunity to get to know each other over dinner before our full meeting the next day at Intel.  What a great bunch of technologically smart women and men.

Who Attended:

Jessica Benton thattechchick.com

Susan Carraretto www.5minutesformom.com

Catherine Connors herbadmother.com

Lori Cunningham wellconnectedmom.com

Stephanie Ellie www.bizziemommy.com

Mia Kim www.popgadget.net

Michelle Martini about.me/powerfulher

Maggie Mason mightygirl.com

Christen Rochon divasanddorks.com

Jeff Sass dadomatic.com

Michael Sheehan www.hightechdad.com

Judie Stanford www.geardiary.com

Annie Wang www.hercampus.com

Alli Worthington blissfullydomestic.com

The Upgrade Your Life Meeting Day Agenda:

• Green is the New Black
• An Archaeology of the Present: Cars, Mobile Technologies, & Messiness
• Upgrade Your Life (or that of your parents, your children’s’…)
• Speed Dating with Women of Intel
• Innovation Open House
• Intel Education Service Corps

To give you a glimpse of what the day was like, I took some notes to share with you.  I’ve included the Green is the New Black session in this article and will share another session in the coming weeks.

Green is the New Black

Intel bleeds green.  Conservation is a top priority within the company.  Being green cuts costs while reducing their corporate environmental footprint.  Intel has largely focused their efforts in these three areas:

Energy

• Intel is the largest voluntary purchaser of “green” power in the US (according to the US EPA.)
• Intel has built miles and miles of solar panels in the desert to gain over 3.8 million solar KWH per year.

Water

• Intel has saved over 40 billion gallons of water since 1998 due to their conservation actions and investments.
• Intel partnered with the city of Chandler, AZ to fund and build a reverse osmosis plant.  Intel uses the city’s “grey” water in their plants operations.

Waste

• Remarkably, Intel recycled 80% of their solid waste in 2010.
• Intel partners with others in the industry to make computers more green.
• Intel actually has an employee going through their waste and scraps at various plants and offices to find if an item can be reused or  recycled.

Intel’s Energy Vision

Intel knows that in order for consumers to reduce their personal household energy consumption, they need to be better educated on their current usage.  Intel is helping to lead this charge.  Their chip sets are inserted inside smart grids, homes, and buildings.  Intel has created a home energy wireless system that utilizes a number of wireless sensors.  Plugging these sensors into the home energy management system allows for energy consumption to be recorded.  Information gleamed from this system will empower consumers by educating them on their consumption and providing recommendations for reduced energy use.

A Mom’s Perspective

What impressed me the most about Intel was that though our discussions greatly involved technology, not once did we take a look at their current products.  The focus of the entire day was on understanding how people use technology and throughly investigating their needs.

Intel doesn’t wait for their customers (computer companies) to come to them with their needs, Intel often is already ahead of customer’s needs and preparing for them.  Intel is one of the most forward thinking companies I have ever come across.  And the way their employees are given leeway to innovate in their jobs, it’s no wonder why employees often have long careers at Intel.

If you were hoping for an explanation of the basic differences between Intel and AMD’s chipsets, we’ll have to save that for another post.  When that day comes for me to learn more, I’ll be sure to write an article on it.  Suffice it to say that yes, Intel sells products but they provide a lot more value as an organization than just the products they produce.

* Intel provided transportation and lodging during my 2 1/2 day visit with them.  All opinions are my own.