Intel commends TSMC, new investment in Taiwan
Intel commends TSMC
After calling Taiwan a geopolitically unstable place for manufacturing, Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger flew to the country to negotiate with rival TSMC foundry to outsource a portion of chip manufacturing. He is unsurprising that Gelsinger's rhetoric changed along the way as he admitted that TSMC's contract manufacturing model largely enabled a vibrant ecosystem of manufacturing and innovation. He also said Intel will continue to invest in Taiwan, but stressing that the global production chain must be balanced.Gelsinger specifically said, “TSMC has unlocked the magic of silicon for us and others in the sector in so many ways. What TSMC has done is spectacular. At the heart of much of all this indigenization of innovation is Taiwan. It is nothing short of surprising what Taiwan has become in the past few decades. ”
Photo Credit: Intel For Intel, Taiwan is a very special place and TSMC is a very special enemy. Intel is pursuing its new IDM 2.0 strategy that will see it produce chips for third parties, just like TSMC, making other foundries, such as Taiwan's, its rivals. But for a company that outsources the manufacturing of some of its products and also works with various OEMs, ODMs and manufacturers based in Taiwan, the region is extremely important. To this end, Intel will continue to invest in Taiwan (and also in China, despite the geopolitical tensions between the United States and the People's Republic of China) as long as it remains an important high-tech development and manufacturing hub. In fact, Intel already outsources more than 25% of its production to external chip makers like TSMC.
However, as an IDM 2.0 company that has a global semiconductor manufacturing network, Intel continues to emphasize the importance of an international supply chain with factories located in different parts of the world. To a large extent this happens because it is extremely difficult for the company to compete with companies in Taiwan and South Korea, as they get huge incentives and support from their governments when they build new factories.
Gelsinger added: “We , the semiconductor industry, we need to find a global solution that meets the tremendous demand for our technology. We need to build factories faster, run them with higher yields, install more equipment and do it in a way that balances the global supply chain for the future. "
Intel looking to develop closer relationship with TSMC
(MENAFN- IANS) >
Taipei, Dec 4 (IANS) Chip-maker Intel is apparently seeking to deepen its relationship with the world's largest contract manufacturer for chips, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) to avoid possible clashes over TSMC's 3nm chip production.
TSMC is beginning pilot production of its 3nm process that will eventually be used in future Apple silicon Macs. Now, high-level executives from Intel are planning to visit Taiwan and TSMC in mid-December to discuss 3nm chip production and production capacity, reports DigiTimes.
TSMC has kicked off pilot production of chips built using N3 (namely 3nm process technology) at its Fab 18 in southern Taiwan.
Currently, Apple uses TSMC's 5nm processors for the M1 chips and it is expected that TSMC's 3nm processors will power the next generation of Apple Silicon.
Compared with the 5nm process, the 3nm gate-all-around (GAA) node boosts performance by 30 per cent, lowers power consumption 50 per cent and takes up 35 per cent less space.
A report last month said that Intel would be looking to adopt TSMC's 3nm process for its upcoming Meteor Lake processors.
Meanwhile, TSMC is teaming up with Sony on its new $7 billion chip factory in Japan, the companies have announced jointly.
--IANS
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