Despite a rough couple of years for the company, Intel could be set to make a turnaround with both its handheld chips performing well, and its Foundry business taking on substantial orders, at least if recent reports prove to be true. It seems like the AI boom has really squeezed semiconductor leader TSMC’s supplies dry, and Intel is now being tapped to provide some chips in its place.
As reported by The Information, Google has reportedly ordered at least three million chip orders from Intel, in the form of TPUs (Tensor Processing Units), according to two people familiar with the company. This Google-designed unit is specifically created for use in neural network machines. In case that sounds like gibberish, it’s basically Google, yet again, further committing to AI.
These TPUs not only go towards developing Google’s own AI services but will also be sold to companies like Apple and Meta. Google is reportedly expected to make more than six million TPUs between 2027 and 2028, so it will presumably be relying on both TSMC and Intel to provide the facilities to help make these chips.
TSMC is the world’s leading semiconductor manufacturer, and Intel’s biggest competition. So, in a sense, the ongoing memory crisis sucking up all the resources is somewhat beneficial to Intel, which may not have been able to make such a deal if TSMC were able to meet demand. That’s before mentioning that the TPU demand wouldn’t be so high without the AI boom.
As well as this, Nvidia is reportedly testing Intel to see if its chips can be used in its next major project, seemingly its next GPU architecture. Currently codenamed Feynman, it supposedly combines four graphics chips into one unit, so if Intel can win the contract, that could be just one more step in establishing the Foundry’s foothold in the gaming market.
Nvidia is reportedly TSMC’s biggest buyer, beating out Apple, which used to be at the top of the list, with the company providing the chips in all of its phones, laptops, and tablets. However, TSMC has been struggling to meet demand for a while now. It is now reportedly sold out until at least 2028, with even its Arizona fab being fully booked before it is even built.
Just last year, TSMC announced a $100 billion investment plan into three US-based fabs, but it’s not the only one with expansion plans. Just last week, Intel seemingly started targeting a $3.3 billion factory in India. It seems both companies have big plans to ride the AI wave as far as it will take them.
One can only hope that this extra investment will contribute to stabilising supply sooner, rather than later. I can’t hold out on upgrading my PC forever.
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