AMD Signs $3 Billion Deal with Sanmina to Sell Portion of ZT Systems, Retains Server Design and Customer Enablement Expertise

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AMD’s $3 Billion Sale of ZT Systems to Sanmina

In a move anticipated by industry analysts, Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) has finalized a definitive agreement to transfer its data center infrastructure and manufacturing unit from ZT Systems to Sanmina for a total of $3 billion.

Details of the Transaction

As outlined in the agreement, AMD will receive $2.25 billion in cash from Sanmina, alongside a $300 million premium that will be split equally between cash and equity contributions (i.e., $150 million each).Additionally, a contingent payment of $450 million may be payable to AMD, contingent upon the financial performance of the acquired assets over the next three years.

Strategic Partnership

This agreement designates Sanmina as a key partner for AMD regarding new product introductions (NPI) tailored for its cloud rack and cluster-scale artificial intelligence (AI) solutions.

Timeline and Market Insights

The closure of the deal is projected for completion by the end of 2025. Notably, AMD had acquired ZT Systems for approximately $4.9 billion just a few months earlier, in March 2025. Since that acquisition, AMD has been strategically positioning parts of ZT in profitable market transactions.

It is important to note that the estimated sale price aligns at the lower end of analysts’ projections, with Loop Capital previously estimating a figure around $3.5 billion.

Share Buyback Program Expansion

Concurrently, AMD has announced an increase in its share buyback program by an additional $6 billion. This expanded initiative, combined with approximately $4 billion in existing buyback authorizations as of March 29, 2025, brings AMD’s total available buyback capital to around $10 billion. This initiative accompanies AMD’s repurchase of shares totaling about $749 million in the first quarter of 2025.

Collaboration with HUMAIN to Enhance AI Capacity

In a separate but relevant development, HUMAIN, an AI-focused subsidiary backed by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF), has formalized a partnership with AMD to establish a significant $10 billion fund aimed at deploying 500 megawatts of AI compute capacity over the next five years.

Under the terms of this collaboration, HUMAIN will handle the development of the necessary data center infrastructure and energy requirements within Saudi Arabia, while AMD will contribute its AI computing solutions and the AMD ROCm™ open software ecosystem. The partnership aims to commission their first “multi-exaflop capacity”data center in Saudi Arabia by early 2026.

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