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Short answer: Nvidia and Intel have confirmed a collaboration on custom CPUs and PC products, but they have not announced that Intel will manufacture Nvidia’s main GPU dies. Reports say Nvidia—and possibly Apple—could send selected chip or packaging work to Intel around 2028. Apple has not publicly confirmed an Intel Foundry production deal in the sources reviewed. The evidence points to a possible partial second-source strategy, not a wholesale move away from TSMC.
What the headline gets right—and what it overstates
The 2028 claim comes from industry reporting, not a public production announcement from Nvidia, Apple, or Intel. DigiTimes reported that Nvidia was expected to shift some future production to Intel; subsequent coverage extended the story to Apple and discussed possible roles for Intel in chip fabrication or packaging. The reported timing and scope remain uncertain. DigiTimes’ reporting should not be confused with a confirmed customer contract.
The distinction matters because “making a chip” can mean several things: fabricating a silicon die, assembling multiple dies into a package, or supplying a custom processor. Those are different business arrangements. The official Nvidia–Intel announcement confirms some product collaboration, but it does not say Intel will make Nvidia’s flagship AI GPU dies or that Apple has committed M-series production to Intel.
What Nvidia and Intel have actually announced
On September 18, 2025, Nvidia and Intel announced a collaboration spanning custom data-center and PC products. Under the plan, Intel would design and manufacture custom x86 CPUs for Nvidia data-center systems. Intel would also manufacture PC system-on-chips that integrate Nvidia RTX GPU chiplets, with Nvidia NVLink connecting Nvidia and Intel architectures. Nvidia announced a planned $5 billion investment in Intel common stock at $23.28 per share, subject to customary closing conditions and regulatory approvals. The companies’ announcement describes these products and the investment.
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That is meaningful evidence of a strategic relationship, but it is not an announcement that Intel will fabricate Nvidia’s principal GPU compute dies. A custom x86 CPU that Intel manufactures for an Nvidia system is not the same thing as an Nvidia GPU made on Intel’s process. Likewise, a PC SoC containing an Nvidia RTX chiplet does not establish that Intel will make every die in the package.
Apple’s reported role remains unconfirmed
Industry coverage has suggested Apple could place selected future chip work with Intel, possibly for an entry-level or lower-tier M-series processor. The primary company materials reviewed do not confirm an Apple–Intel Foundry contract, a named product, a process node, production volumes, or a 2028 commitment. Treat the Apple portion as a report, not a completed deal.
If Apple did use Intel to manufacture an Apple-designed chip, that would be a foundry relationship—not Apple returning to Intel x86 processors. Apple Silicon is designed by Apple; a foundry manufactures the design. A limited second-source arrangement could also coexist with continued TSMC production rather than replace it.
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What “shift production” could mean
A chip product can involve multiple suppliers and manufacturing stages. A company can move one stage or one die without moving an entire processor family.
| Stage or component | What it means | What is reported or confirmed here |
|---|---|---|
| Wafer fabrication | Making individual silicon dies on a process node. | Selected future Intel fabrication work is reported, but specific products and volumes are not confirmed. |
| Compute die | The die containing the main CPU or GPU processing cores. | There is no confirmation that Intel will make Nvidia’s primary AI GPU die. |
| I/O or auxiliary die | A supporting die that handles input/output or other functions and may not need the same process as the compute die. | Possible Nvidia auxiliary-die work has been reported, not confirmed by the companies. |
| Custom CPU or PC SoC | A processor designed for a particular system or product. | Intel’s role in custom x86 CPUs and Nvidia-related PC SoCs is part of the announced Nvidia–Intel collaboration. |
| Advanced packaging | Joining multiple dies and connecting them inside one package. | Intel has packaging capabilities relevant to chiplet products, but a specific Nvidia or Apple packaging contract is not confirmed. |
Illustrative scenario, not a confirmed design: TSMC could fabricate a primary compute die; Intel might supply a supporting die or packaging; the finished product could combine the parts in a multi-die package. The actual reported arrangements, if any, have not been publicly specified at that level.
Why a company might add Intel without leaving TSMC
For Nvidia or Apple, a second source could offer geographic diversification, another source of capacity, and leverage in negotiations over cost and delivery. A company might also assign a less performance-critical die to a different process while reserving its most demanding component for its established supplier. These are plausible strategic reasons for exploring a split supply chain—not confirmed statements of either company’s motives.
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Chiplet architectures can make such a split more practical: different dies in one product do not always need to be made by the same foundry or on the same process. But distributing work across suppliers adds design, testing, packaging, and qualification complexity. Diversification is therefore not as simple as transferring a finished design to a new factory.
For Intel, winning a high-profile external customer would validate its effort to become a foundry for other chip designers, rather than manufacturing only its own products. Intel Foundry offers process manufacturing as well as advanced packaging and chiplet integration. Intel promotes technologies including EMIB and says it has produced more than 100 2.5D designs in volume; that figure and its capacity comparisons are Intel’s own claims, not independent measures. Intel’s foundry fact sheet outlines its capabilities.
Intel’s process roadmap is an opportunity, not a guarantee
Intel 18A combines RibbonFET gate-all-around transistors with PowerVia backside power delivery. Intel has described 18A as entering volume production in 2025. Intel 14A is a later roadmap node associated with high-NA EUV and a timeline extending into the 2028 period. A roadmap target is not proof that a particular customer product will be ready for mass production then: Intel cautions that plans can change. Intel’s roadmap describes its planned process sequence.
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- Compatible with Intel 600-series (with potential BIOS update) or 700-series chipset-based motherboards
- DDR4 and DDR5 platform support cuts your load times and gives you the space to run the most demanding games
Intel’s 2025 earnings-call materials said 14A remained in development and validation, including work on process definition, design enablement, process design kits, foundational intellectual property, and test chips. The call materials provide context for the gap between a roadmap node and a qualified customer product.
Intel is also investing in manufacturing capacity. On July 13, 2026, it announced a €5 billion investment to expand manufacturing at its Leixlip campus in Ireland. That supports Intel’s broader capacity strategy; it does not establish an Nvidia or Apple contract. Intel’s announcement describes the investment.
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- Yield and cost: A process must produce enough working dies at a competitive cost. Lower yields can make a nominally available node uneconomic for a customer.
- Schedule: A delay in process readiness, design enablement, or packaging qualification could miss a product launch window. A 2028 target is not a guarantee of production in that year.
- Design migration: Moving a design between foundries requires adapting it to different design rules, process design kits, libraries, and intellectual property. That work takes time and can affect performance, power, and cost.
- Packaging complexity: Multi-die products require dependable die-to-die interconnects, thermal management, power delivery, and testing. Using multiple suppliers can make failure analysis and qualification harder.
- Volume and customer service: A foundry must provide qualified capacity when needed, protect customer designs, and deliver consistent quality. Intel’s filings acknowledge its limited experience in the highly competitive third-party foundry business and name established rivals including TSMC and Samsung. Intel’s filing discusses the competitive and execution risks.
- Commercial commitment: A company evaluating a process, testing a chip, or qualifying Intel as a backup has not necessarily committed to high-volume production. Early volumes could be too small to materially change Intel Foundry’s finances.
The financial gap is visible in Intel’s reported results: in the quarter covered by its fourth-quarter 2025 earnings-call materials, external Foundry revenue was $222 million while Intel Foundry recorded a $2.5 billion operating loss. Those figures are specific to that reported quarter, not a forecast of what a future customer deal would earn. Intel’s earnings-call document gives the figures and context.
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- Compatible with Intel 600-series (with potential BIOS update) or 700-series chipset-based motherboards
- DDR4 and DDR5 platform support cuts your load times and gives you the space to run the most demanding games
What this could mean for TSMC
Even if Intel wins selected work, TSMC could remain the supplier for the largest-volume or most performance-sensitive dies. The reported scenario is better understood as possible supplier diversification than as a confirmed Nvidia or Apple exit from TSMC. A supporting die, custom CPU, or packaging role can be strategically important without displacing the foundry that makes a product’s main compute die.
What evidence would turn the reports into a confirmed production story?
Look for a company announcement naming a foundry product or process, a disclosed design win or tape-out, a production reservation or supply agreement, or earnings disclosures that show meaningful customer revenue. Intel milestones on 14A design enablement, test chips, and qualification would help establish readiness, but a process milestone alone would not prove that Apple or Nvidia has placed an order. Until stronger evidence appears, keep the confirmed Nvidia–Intel product collaboration separate from the reported 2028 foundry possibility.
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