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AMI, formerly (and commonly) known as American Megatrends, is a software and hardware development company specializing in the PC BIOS, UEFI firmware, and various PC hardware. The company was founded in 1985 as Quintessential Consultants Inc. (QCI) in Norcross, Georgia. The company was later renamed to "American Megatrends Inc." shortly after its establishment, and then again to "AMI" in 2020.
Background
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Access Methods Inc. (AMI) was an earlier joint venture by Subramonian Shankar and Pat Sarma founded in 1979 in Upper Montclair, New Jersey and incorporated in New York City two years later.[1][2] The company specialized in computer software, including AMIBIOS; an IBM PC-compatible BIOS firmware that competed primarily with PhoenixBIOS and AwardBIOS.
Foundation
Shortly after the release of AMIBIOS in 1985, legal problems arose between Sarma and his partners. Sarma formed a new company called Quintessential Consultants Inc. (QCI). This new company was later renamed "American Megatrends, Inc." (to keep the "AMIBIOS" acronym) and bought the rights to the AMIBIOS from the older Access Methods Inc.
American Megatrends was owned by both Sarma and Shankar, with Sarma as owner and Shankar as vice president.[3] This partnership continued until 2001, when LSI Logic purchased the RAID division of American Megatrends. AMI then purchased all of Sarma's shares in the company, making Shankar the majority owner.[4]
In 2020, the company was renamed "AMI", and in 2022, the headquarters were moved from Norcross to Building 800 at 3095 Satellite Boulevard in unincorporated Gwinnett County, Georgia, near the city of Duluth.