Editing Advanced Computing Environment (section)

===Dissolution===
Even so, the ACE initiative (and consortium) began to fall apart little more than a year after it started, as it became apparent that there was not a mass market for an alternative to the [[Wintel]] computing platform. The upstart platforms did not offer enough performance improvement from the incumbent PC and there were major cost disadvantages of such systems due to the low volume production. When the initiative started, RISC based systems (running at 100-200&nbsp;MHz at the time) had substantial performance advantages over [[Intel 80486]] chips (running at approximately 60&nbsp;MHz at the time), but the Pentium promised to reduce such advantages.{{citation needed|date=October 2022|reason=Some references to contemporary commentary would be desirable.}}

Compaq was the first company to leave the consortium, stating that with the departure of CEO [[Rod Canion]], one of the primary backers behind the formation of ACE, they were shifting priorities away from higher-end systems.<ref name="electronicnews19920504_ace">{{cite news | url=https://archive.org/details/sim_electronic-news_1992-05-04_38_1910/mode/1up | last1=Cassell | first1=Jonathan | last2=Khermouch | first2=Gerry | last3=Stedman | first3=Craig | last4=Zipper | first4=Stuart | title=Is ACE consortium in the hole as Compaq, SCO throw in cards? | work=Electronic News | date=4 May 1992 | access-date=25 November 2021 | pages=1, 6 |volume=3 |issue=1910 |url-access=registration}}</ref> Other factors included Compaq's ongoing restructuring amidst disappointing financial results, the accelerated introduction of the Pentium, and increasing availability of Unix software for the Intel architecture. This was followed in short order by SCO announcing that they were suspending all work on moving their version of Unix to the MIPS platform.<ref name="computerworld19920504_ace">{{ cite magazine | url=https://archive.org/details/computerworld2618unse/page/105/mode/1up | title=Compaq exits ACE, posts dismal quarterly revenue | magazine=Computerworld | date=4 May 1992 | access-date=25 November 2021 | last1=Hildebrand | first1=Carol | pages=105 |volume=XXVI |issue=18}}</ref> Canion's departure from Compaq had precipitated the dissolution of a technology development agreement between Compaq and SGI in early 1992 that had been established for the co-development of MIPS-based computers, although Compaq denied that this would result in the company withdrawing from the ACE consortium, which happened only months later.<ref name="computerworld19920127_compaq">{{ cite magazine | url=https://archive.org/details/computerworld264unse/page/4/mode/1up | title=Compaq, SGI call it quits | magazine=Computerworld | date=27 January 1992 | access-date=25 November 2021 | last1=Hildebrand | first1=Carol | pages=4 |volume=XXVI | issue=4}}</ref>

There were other potential conflicts and difficulties for the consortium. In early 1992, SGI had announced its intention to acquire MIPS Computer Systems, leading vendors such as Control Data ("the largest OEM customer of both MIPS and SGI") to consider switching to other architectures over concerns about this pending acquisition and SGI's resulting control over the target platform. DEC had released their Alpha processor and were less interested in promoting a competing architecture, indicating continued low-end support for MIPS,<ref name="electronicnews19920504_ace" /> but exhibiting a lack of commitment to future products, notably in relation to the MIPS R4000 line of processors and support for OSF/1 on the company's DECstation products.<ref name="electronicnews19920504_dec">{{ cite magazine | url=https://archive.org/details/sim_electronic-news_1992-05-04_38_1910/page/n10/mode/1up | title=DEC Rethinks VAX, Station Plans | magazine=Electronic News | date=4 May 1992 | access-date=25 November 2021 | last1=Stedman | first1=Craig | pages=9 }}</ref>

Meanwhile, the accelerated delivery and anticipated performance improvements of Intel's upcoming Pentium processor, combined with more competitive pricing, made the "20 to 30 percent premium" of MIPS-based systems less attractive to vendors such as Compaq and their customers. Although ACE originally supported the [[x86]] architecture, customers were reportedly confused by an incoherent message around the different hardware and software options encompassed by the initiative. Consequently, an increased emphasis on the MIPS architecture "as an informal recognition of what the organization has really been doing all along" was envisaged, focusing more on ARC as a way of delivering MIPS-based hardware.<ref name="electronicnews19920504_ace" /> In April 1992, the ACE Executive Advisory Board refocused the initiative on systems software availability for the ARC platform.<ref name="unixreview199209_ace"/>

Intel was never itself a member of ACE, with its processor architecture having been introduced to the effort by Compaq. Since MIPS had been seeking to gain market share at Intel's expense, the initiative was a competitive threat to Intel, forcing the company "to take greater steps to accommodate its customers".<ref name="electronicnews19920504_ace" /> Indeed, one reported motivation for Compaq's involvement in ACE was to "light a fire under Intel" and get the company to produce a roadmap that was competitive enough for Compaq's customers. Intel's response was to accelerate the delivery of the Pentium and to pursue parallel development of three generations of future products ([[Pentium|P5]], [[P6 (microarchitecture)|P6]] and P7), thus providing a roadmap that could dissuade its customers from adopting RISC architectures.<ref name="unixreview199209_ace"/>