During an event announcing Intel Foundry Services, CEO Pat Gelsinger said it would pursue Apple as a client; Apple currently relies on TSMC as its sole supplier
Apple in November started releasing Macs with Apple-designed M1 chips, and the Apple silicon technology will eventually replace …
MacRumorsJuli Clover
Context & Ripple Effects
Intel Foundry Services launches with Apple explicitly named as a prospective customer, even as Apple depends on TSMC for chip supply. The significance is less an immediate supply shift than Intel’s attempt to sell manufacturing to the company whose Mac transition is built around Apple-designed silicon.
Intel Foundry Services adds Apple to its target-customer list, putting Intel in direct competition with TSMC for a customer that is currently sole-sourced.
Apple’s manufacturing arrangement does not change on this announcement; TSMC remains its stated sole supplier.
Second-order effects
TSMC faces a newly declared alternative supplier for Apple, while Intel must show that its foundry service can win business from a customer advancing its own Mac silicon roadmap.
Apple gains a potential second-source option in negotiations, even though the related coverage provides no evidence of an Intel manufacturing agreement.
Third-order effects
If Intel converts its pursuit into production work, leading chip designers may have more reason to split manufacturing across foundries rather than rely on a single supplier.
The trend: Chip companies are increasingly separating chip design from manufacturing, turning foundry capacity into a competitive lever for system makers seeking supply flexibility.
It's really funny to hear Pat Gelsinger at #IntelUnleashed name drop potential collaboration with Apple on the new foundry business after Intel spent the last week on an ill-advised ad campaign dunking on Apple. I don't think the bridge is burned, it's just eyebrow-raising.
So apparently using skewed benchmarks, hiring the “I'm a Mac” guy and otherwise acting like a petulant child that had its toys taken away is “fun” now. https://twitter.com/...
La dee daa daa, just havin' a fun day as Apple kicks our ass in chipmaking. Not like the writing has been on the wall for years or anything. Ice cream later?😙
Which was less credible at the time it was made? a) Nokia CEO Stephen Elop's 2011 ‘burning platform’ memo b) Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger's 2021 ‘Intel, IDM 2.0’ presentation
The real genius of Intel announcing it will compete with TSMC is in shifting perceptions. Overnight, it goes from clumsy incumbent losing customers like Apple to scrappy made-in-America underdog fighting for customers like Apple.
“Intel CEO: ‘We will pursue opportunities with Apple’” (ProTip: Might not be a bad idea to start negotiations with Apple by publicly firing your current Chief Marketing Officer.)