With UMC deal Intel reveals potential to be foundries’ foundry
Intel Corp. and foundry United Microelectronics Corp. (Hsinchu, Taiwan) have announced they will jointly develop a 12nm manufacturing process platform to be manufactured at Intel fabs in Arizona.
The process will target such markets as mobile phones, communications infrastructure and networking. Production of chips made with the 12 nm process is expected to begin in 2027.
In a press statement the companies did not discuss whether the deal could be extended to other manufacturing processes but the partnership is described as “strategic” and “long-term.” The companies also said that it brings together Intel’s US manufacturing capacity and UMC’s foundry experience on mature nodes. It also offers global customers options for a more geographically diversified and therefore resilient supply chain, the companies said.
Intel agreed a similar manufacturing agreement with Tower Semiconductor Ltd. in 2023 after an attempt to buy Tower was thwarted by the lack of approval from the Chinese antitrust regulator (see Intel, Tower make New Mexico foundry deal).
“Taiwan has been a critical part of the Asian and global semiconductor and broader technology ecosystem for decades, and Intel is committed to collaborating with innovative companies in Taiwan, such as UMC, to help better serve global customers,” said Stuart Pann, Intel senior vice president and general manager of Intel Foundry Services (IFS). “Intel’s strategic collaboration with UMC further demonstrates our commitment to delivering technology and manufacturing innovation across the global semiconductor supply chain and is another important step toward our goal of becoming the world’s second-largest foundry by 2030.”
Jason Wang, UMC co-president, said, “Our collaboration with Intel on a US-manufactured 12 nm process with FinFET capabilities is a step forward in advancing our strategy of pursuing cost-efficient capacity expansion and technology node advancement in continuing our commitment to customers. This effort will enable our customers to smoothly migrate to this critical new node, and also benefit from the resiliency of an added Western footprint. We are excited for this strategic collaboration with Intel, which broadens our addressable market and significantly accelerates our development roadmap leveraging the complementary strengths of both companies.”
The 12nm FinFET process node will be developed and manufactured in Fabs 12, 22 and 32 at Intel’s Ocotillo Technology Fabrication site in Arizona. Leveraging existing equipment in these fabs will significantly reduce upfront investment and improve tool utilization, Intel said.
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