Apple and Intel Reach Preliminary Chip-Making Deal

According to foreign media reports, Apple and Intel are on the verge of reaching an agreement under which Intel will manufacture some chips for Apple's devices.

People familiar with the matter disclosed that negotiations between the two companies have been underway for more than a year, with a preliminary agreement reached in recent months.

Apple currently relies entirely on TSMC to produce all of its most advanced chips. However, amid surging demand for artificial intelligence chips, TSMC's wafer production capacity remains constrained. If the deal is finalized, it will give a strong boost to Intel's foundry business and the mass production progress of its advanced process nodes.

It is reported that Intel is rapidly expanding its production capacity, with its new chip manufacturing plant in Chandler, Arizona, now in full-scale mass production. The facility adopts Intel's cutting-edge 18A process technology to produce chips, aiming to compete with TSMC's current 2nm process, which is exclusively manufactured in Taiwan. TSMC is also building several new chip factories in Arizona, and Apple has committed to outsourcing part of its chip production to these facilities.