Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger recently announced some important news for investors. The company is pursuing a new business strategy called IDM 2.0, which includes investing $20 billion in new facilities in Arizona, introducing Intel's 7-nanometer processors for computers, and also opening up its manufacturing capabilities to build custom chips for other companies.
As Business Wire reported, Gelsinger shared his idea for the evolution of Intel's business model, which he calls "Integrated Device Manufacturing" or "IDM 2.0." Intel wants to expand its operations to not only expand the development of its own chips but also manufacture processors for third-party manufacturers. The company will begin with an estimated investment of $20 billion to build two new plants in Chandler, Arizona. Intel opened a new factory there in 2020 to produce the company's 10-nanometer processors, while the two new facilities are expected to open later this year.
Intel wants to open production capacities to third parties
Intel has stated that it is working on its first 7-nanometer computer processor, called Meteor Lake, which has been delayed several times but is now expected to be completed in the second quarter of 2021. However, it is not expected to ship until 2023. But Intel's strategy now goes beyond its own chips. As competition from AMD and other companies such as Apple, which recently started switching from Intel processors to its own chips in Macs, becomes increasingly fierce, Intel now wants to go a step further and open up its manufacturing capacity to build and supply custom chips for third parties. The company plans to use its facilities in the US and Europe to meet global demand for semiconductor manufacturing.
As part of Intel's Foundry Services, the company announces that it will work with customers to build SoCs with x86, Arm and RISC-V cores, leveraging Intel's IP portfolio of core design and packaging technologies.
Gelsinger aims to manufacture Apple chips
Interestingly, Intel will also work with RISC-V and ARM architectures to build custom chips, which is what Apple uses for its Apple Silicon chips. In a Q&A session with the press (via Engadget), Intel's CEO made it clear that he even wants to convince Apple to use the company's infrastructure to build its own chips.
Gelsinger mentioned that Intel is currently working with partners including Amazon, Cisco, IBM and Microsoft. But he went a bit further during a Q&A session with the press and said that he is even targeting Apple's business.
This does not mean that Apple will work with Intel again. But it will certainly be interesting to see what the future holds. (Photo by Andrey Suslov / Bigstockphoto)
