Intel 18A tests could be a financial boost for the company – or a precursor to a potential acquisition.
www.hackster.io, Mar. 04, 2025 –
Broadcom, recently reported to be eyeing up an acquisition of troubled chipmaker Intel, is reportedly offering the company a lifeline by joining NVIDIA in running manufacturing tests to have their respective semiconductors built in Intel's fabs – but could it be a fact-finding mission ahead of a rumored acquisition attempt?
Broadcom, NVIDIA, and AMD are all named as either evaluating Intel's 18A manufacturing node for their respective processor parts or having already run test chips through one of the company's fabrication facilities, unnamed sources speaking to newswire service Reuters have claimed. All three companies lack their own volume manufacturing capabilities – in AMD's case following its decision to spin out its in-house facilities into the external company that would become GlobalFoundries.
Intel has been struggling to keep up with Moore's Law – the observation turned must-hit target by co-founder Gordon Moore that the number of transistors on a leading-edge chip trends towards a rough doubling every 18 months, which requires a corresponding shrinking in size. Its bleeding-edge manufacturing nodes have been beset with problems and it has seen its market share shrinking against long-term rival AMD and competitor in the artificial intelligence (AI) space NVIDIA.
Most recently, sources claimed that Broadcom was investigating the possibility of acquiring Intel – or its chip design and marketing divisions, at least, with the manufacturing facilities reportedly of interest to Taiwan Semiconductor (TSMC). Should Broadcom send business Intel's way through its foundry business – the brainchild of recently-ousted chief executive officer Pat Gelsinger – it would give the company a financial shot in the arm, but running a test production doesn't guarantee an order will follow; it's possible Broadcom is trying out Intel's facilities for its own designs as a precursor to any possible acquisition.
As is to be expected, neither Broadcom, NVIDIA, nor AMD are willing to go on the record regarding their plans at this time; Intel, for its part, states only that it "continue[s] to see strong interest and engagement on Intel 18A across our ecosystem" without commenting directly on any individual customers.