Intel is one of the few remaining semiconductor firms that
still designs and manufactures its own chips. But it lost its lead in making
the fastest chips to TSMC, which focuses on manufacturing designs from outside
firms, after missteps in its manufacturing operations.
Intel Chief Executive Pat Gelsinger earlier this year
outlined the company's strategy to regain its footing in manufacturing by 2025.
But in the meantime, Intel is trying to prevent further erosion of its chip
market share by rivals such as Advanced Micro Devices Inc and Nvidia Corp, who
have faster offerings.
Part of Intel's answer involves tapping rivals like TSMC for
subcomponents of chips called "tiles" and stitching those together in
Intel's own factories with packaging technology. Intel on Thursday said its new
"Ponte Vecchio" chip will use key tiles made with TMSC's
"N5" and "N7" chipmaking technologies, placed on top of an
Intel-made base.
The "Ponte Vecchio" chip's first major use will be
in a supercomputer that Intel is building for the U.S. Department of Energy.
Raja Koduri, senior vice president of Intel's accelerated
computing systems and graphics group, conceded it had been years since Intel
challenged Nvidia at speeding up artificial intelligence software, a market
that has powered much of the chip industry's expansion in recent years.
Koduri said the "Ponte Vecchio" chip is faster
than Nvidia's offerings at some of those tasks.
"For a decade, we let them just have free reign,"
Koduri said. "That ends now."
Intel earlier this week also gave a new name to its graphics
chips that will challenge Nvidia's other major market of video gaming.
Intel said Thursday its "Alchemist" graphics chips
will be made by TSMC using the latter's newly named "N6" chipmaking
technology, an upgraded version of its "N7" technology.
Intel said Thursday its "Alchemist" graphics chips
will be made by TSMC using the latter's newly named "N6" chipmaking
technology, an upgraded version of its "N7" technology.
Reuters reported in January that Intel would use TSMC's upgraded technology.
© Reuters
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