AMD offers Threadripper trades for Intel's 8086K

AMD has hit back at Intel's Core i7-8086K Limited Edition giveaway promotion, launching a tongue-in-cheek - but entirely genuine - offer of its own: If you win one of Intel's top-end six-core chips, you can trade it in with AMD for a 16-core Ryzen Threadripper 1950X.

Announced earlier this month to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the 8086, Intel's first x86-architecture microprocessor, the Core i7-8086K is a specially-binned and pre-overclocked version of the company's six-core 12-thread (6c12t) Core i7-8700K. As well as selling the chip at retail, Intel furthered its promotional aims with the launch of a giveaway: 8,086 people randomly selected from a pool of entrants would be sent one of the chips completely free of charge.

AMD, which is currently enjoying the sensation of being more-or-less competitive with its larger rival for the first time since Intel dropped the Netburst microarchitecture, couldn't let such an offer lie, though. The company has responded with an offer of its own: Winners of the sweepstake can send their chip to AMD and receive a 16-core 32-thread (16c32t) Ryzen Threadripper 1950X chip by return post - and can thus 'celebrate the next 40 years of high-performance computing by trading in their commemorative processor prize for our CPU that enables you to work, play and create with heavy metal.'

Before lucky winners of Intel's chips get too excited, though, there's a pretty big catch: While cash-rich Intel gave away 8,086 of the processors across the globe, the somewhat more financially strapped AMD is opening its trade-in programme to just 40 - and they must be located in the US.

Intel, amusingly, has swiped back at its smaller rival in good-natured fashion, taking to its social media channels to suggest that 'if you [AMD] wanted an Intel Core i7-8086K processor too, you could have just asked us.'

For US readers who were lucky enough to get a prize in Intel's giveaway and who fancy the thought of trading up to a Ryzen Threadripper, details of AMD's offer are available on the official website.