If you keep your ear low to the ground, you might have heard some mumbling this week about a possible partnership being forged between AMD and IBM. According to JMP Securities analyst Krishna Shankar, the partnership "may involve a strategic equity infusion or even an outright merger between AMD and IBM Microelectronics." AMD is certainly in a tough spot right now and can use all the allies it can get. But what would IBM stand to gain from such a partnership? ZDnet's Larry Dignan took a close look at the rumors and tried to separate the reasonable scenarios from the wild speculation. While an outright merger and even a cash infusion probably don't fit into IBM's focus on software and services, a production partnership or strategic alliance could potentially benefit both companies. "AMD needs a big brother to fight Intel," Dignan notes. "IBM would fit the bill nicely." 

For more on the speculation:
- see this ZDnet article