Latest news with #Zinsner
Yahoo
03-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Intel's ex-CEO said he bet the company on the 18A node but now a new report claims Intel is pushing customers to next-gen 14A instead
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. Another one bites the dust. According to a new report from Reuters, Intel's customer foundry business could largely give up on its all-important 18A node. Instead, Intel will retain 18A as an internal node for chips like its upcoming Panther Lake laptop CPU and shift the focus to promoting its 14A for external customers. If true, this follows Intel's wholesale cancellation of the 20A node, along with limited roll outs of Intel 4 and Intel 3 (Intel has never and likely will never make any consumer CPUs on those nodes). As things stand, you have to go back to 10 nm, rebranded Intel 7, to find a node that the company used across its full portfolio of enterprise and consumer chips. In the meantime, Intel has been paying Taiwanese foundry TSMC to make CPUs like its Lunar Lake laptop and Arrow Lake desktop chips. Reuters claims that Intel's new CEO Lip Bun Tan has been voicing concerns that its 18A node has been losing appeal to customers. "Tan's preliminary answer to this challenge: focus more resources on 14A, a next-generation chipmaking process where Intel expects to have advantages over Taiwan's TSMC," Reuters claims, adding that Intel is weighing up whether to, "put aside external sales of 18A and its variant 18A-P, manufacturing processes that have cost Intel billions of dollars to develop." As to how accurate the Reuters report is, Intel has already been gently adjusting expectations for the 18A node for a few months now. Back in May, Intel's CFO David Zinsner said, "we always expected that the predominant amount of volume on 18A was going to be internal." Indeed, in that same interview, Zinsner seemed to more broadly de-emphasise the importance of Intel's plans to make chips for customers. When asked about Intel's customer foundry plans, the assumption that Intel's fabs would be breaking even in 2027 and how much external business that would require, Zinsner said, "it doesn't require a ton of revenue for Foundry, it's somewhere in the low to mid single digit billions that Foundry's gotta get from external sources. But I would just remind you that some of that is going to be our partnership with UMC, some of that's going to be our partnership with Tower, some of that's going to be packaging, some of that's going to be 18A, some of that's going to be older generations, for example Intel 16. So, it's not a ton that has to come from 18A." For now, this all remains a rumour. Moreover, Reuter's track record when it comes to Intel's operations isn't exactly flawless. The outlet has previously claimed that Intel and TSMC were working on a joint venture to run the former's fabs, something which has yet to materialise. However, it's certainly true that Intel has yet to announce a healthy list of customers for 18A, with Amazon one of the few design wins the company has been able to tout. As the months and indeed years tick by, that surely becomes more problematic. By now, the assumption is that most customers for next-gen cutting edge nodes will have decided between Intel's 18A node and TSMC's upcoming N2 node. The fact that Intel hasn't been able to announce significant contracts for 18A certainly doesn't bode well. The question then becomes one of Intel's ability to deliver a future node customers do want. As things stand, and for whatever the reasons, be it the quality of its nodes or the tools it provides to customers to use those nodes, Intel hasn't been able to convince many chip designers to use Intel 4, Intel 3, Intel 20 and now, it seems, Intel 18A. So, the emphasis moves to 14A. At some point, however, you have to think Intel needs a win. It can't keep investing billions in new nodes that get limited or no use. For years now, we've been told that 18A is all important. Ex-CEO Pat Gelsigner said he'd literally bet the company on 18A. If it turns out 18A isn't all it was cracked up to be, it's hard to see how that isn't a major problem for Intel. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Intel CFO: Division responsible for Ohio plant remains on track; layoffs have dual purpose
NEW ALBANY, Ohio (WCMH) — Intel's chief financial officer clarified updates for the division behind Ohio's Intel plant this month, including impending layoffs. Dave Zinsner, executive vice president and CFO of Intel, spoke at a Global Technology, Media and Communications Conference on May 13. In his discussion, he addressed changes under new CEO Lip-Bu Tan and the future of Intel Foundry, the division responsible for the $28 billion Ohio One plant. See previous coverage of Intel's Ohio plant in the video player above. $250M facility opens down the road from Intel in New Albany, creating 225 jobs 'While it's not to where we were driving, when you look back, it's actually a fair amount of progress that we have made,' Zinsner said. Once the face of American semiconductor manufacturing, Intel announced its New Albany project in 2022, preparing to build two chip factories across 1,000 acres in Licking County in the largest private investment in Ohio history. Those plants were originally scheduled to be up and running this year, but financial turmoil contributed to a delay into the early 2030s. When Tan stepped into the role of CEO in March, it was unclear where he would take Ohio One and rumors of a buyout persisted. Ohio's plant is still far from central to Tan's public plans, but Zinsner said he is committed to the Foundry business. Despite initial concerns that Tan could abandon the Ohio plant or Intel Foundry entirely, Zinsner said Tan isn't thinking about massive changes. Instead, Tan is focused on streamlining internal operations and addressing customer needs. 'We have lost talent at the company and we do need to rebuild that and the great thing about Lip-Bu is that he's a magnet for talent,' Zinsner said. Zinsner said he believes Tan's biggest concern is a lack of execution, he said he will 'flatten' the organization, which he has already done at the executive level. Tan has far more engineers and leaders reporting directly to him, and he hopes decision-making will be easier with less bureaucracy. Teen on the mend after tree falls into house during storm Part of this streamlining process involves significant layoffs, with Bloomberg reporting 20% cuts across the board and Tan confirming a mass firing will happen by the end of July. Although layoffs help with finances, Zinsner said cuts had less to do with cost reductions and more to do with restructuring and becoming more nimble. 'What he (Tan) wants is the lowest level of the organization to be closer to him so that he's hearing the good, the bad, the ugly of what's going on,' Zinsner said. Zinsner, who served as co-interim CEO before Tan was selected, said the Foundry business behind Ohio's plant was in good shape. He said he was 'highly confident' that Foundry will break even in 2027, positive news for Ohio's expensive plant. Zinsner said many of the problems Intel Foundry faces stem from the makeup of the company. As a Foundry business, Intel wants to develop and manufacture semiconductors for external companies, many of whom compete directly with Intel's other half, Intel Products. Zinsner said that can make it difficult to earn trust as a Foundry. Investigation alleges Kroger overcharges customers on for sale items 'What we have to do is make sure they feel confident that IP is getting protected, but maybe more important that supply is getting protected, that we aren't going to disadvantage their products in terms of supply,' Zinsner said. Tan has a plan for that, too. Zinsner said Tan spends much of his time meeting with customers to hear what they need and earn trust. He recalled Tan had 22 meetings on a weekend once, trying to gather insight from customers. Zinsner did not address the Ohio plant directly, and he also did not address any other developing manufacturing hubs. Construction continues at the Ohio One plant. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
16-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Intel says foundry business won't break even until 14A in 2027
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. Currently, Intel's Foundry division loses billions every quarter as it invests heavily in new process technologies and production capacity. However, the company hopes that the Intel Foundry unit will break even sometime in 2027, which will coincide with the rollout out Intel's 14A manufacturing technology and production start on 18A-P node. Intel this week reaffirmed that the first product made on its 18A (1.8nm-class) fabrication process, the client PC processor (codenamed Panther Lake), will hit the market late this year and will ramp next year. The manufacturing technology will also be adopted for Xeon 'Clearwater Forest' and some third-party products, but from Intel's Foundry business perspective, 18A is will be a proof-of-concept for external clients. If this production node is a success, more potential customers will adopt its successors, including 18A-P, and 14A (1.4nm-class). "I think we do need to see more external volume come from 14A versus versus 18A, said David Zinsner, chief financial officer of Intel, at the J.P. Morgan Global Technology, Media and Communications Conference. "We have […] a bunch of bunch of potential customers, and then we get test chips, and then some customers fall out in the test chips, and then there is a certain amount of customers that kind of hang in there. So, committed volume is not significant right now, for sure. But, you know, I think we have got to partly prove ourselves a little bit with our own product and eat our own dog food here, and then […] we start to see some engagement around customers." Zinsner admitted that if the company choses to use High-NA EUV lithography with its 14A process technology — as it plans to at the moment — its costs will go up initially. Intel hopes that advantages enabled by the new fab tools will outweigh those higher costs. Like other contract chipmakers, Intel does not comment on its clients. The company also intends to produce more of its own silicon in house with its Panther Lake and Nova Lake CPUs, which will improve Intel's margins and its utilization of production capacities. As a result, Intel hopes that its Foundry unit will break even in 2027 and will be profitable from then on. "We still feel on track to to hit breakeven sometime in 2027," Zinsner said. "You know, I think when we committed to it in 2024, we said, 'it is going to be somewhere between 2024 and 2030, most people kind of settled in that that must mean 2027, and that is generally kind of what we are thinking is we can be breakeven." To break even, Intel Foundry only needs low- to mid-single-digit billions in annual external revenue, according to Zinsner. Most of 18A's volume will come from Intel's internal products, while 14A will require more external adoption. Intel's breakeven strategy also includes revenue from advanced packaging, mature nodes (like Intel 16), and partnerships with UMC and Tower. The company will continues to follow its 'smart capital' model, balancing internal and external wafer sourcing, and expects Foundry to compete for internal product demand to ensure efficiency and cost Tom's Hardware on Google News to get our up-to-date news, analysis, and reviews in your feeds. Make sure to click the Follow button.
Yahoo
16-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Intel says foundry business won't break even until 14A in 2027
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. Currently, Intel's Foundry division loses billions every quarter as it invests heavily in new process technologies and production capacity. However, the company hopes that the Intel Foundry unit will break even sometime in 2027, which will coincide with the rollout out Intel's 14A manufacturing technology and production start on 18A-P node. Intel this week reaffirmed that the first product made on its 18A (1.8nm-class) fabrication process, the client PC processor (codenamed Panther Lake), will hit the market late this year and will ramp next year. The manufacturing technology will also be adopted for Xeon 'Clearwater Forest' and some third-party products, but from Intel's Foundry business perspective, 18A is will be a proof-of-concept for external clients. If this production node is a success, more potential customers will adopt its successors, including 18A-P, and 14A (1.4nm-class). "I think we do need to see more external volume come from 14A versus versus 18A, said David Zinsner, chief financial officer of Intel, at the J.P. Morgan Global Technology, Media and Communications Conference. "We have […] a bunch of bunch of potential customers, and then we get test chips, and then some customers fall out in the test chips, and then there is a certain amount of customers that kind of hang in there. So, committed volume is not significant right now, for sure. But, you know, I think we have got to partly prove ourselves a little bit with our own product and eat our own dog food here, and then […] we start to see some engagement around customers." Zinsner admitted that if the company choses to use High-NA EUV lithography with its 14A process technology — as it plans to at the moment — its costs will go up initially. Intel hopes that advantages enabled by the new fab tools will outweigh those higher costs. Like other contract chipmakers, Intel does not comment on its clients. The company also intends to produce more of its own silicon in house with its Panther Lake and Nova Lake CPUs, which will improve Intel's margins and its utilization of production capacities. As a result, Intel hopes that its Foundry unit will break even in 2027 and will be profitable from then on. "We still feel on track to to hit breakeven sometime in 2027," Zinsner said. "You know, I think when we committed to it in 2024, we said, 'it is going to be somewhere between 2024 and 2030, most people kind of settled in that that must mean 2027, and that is generally kind of what we are thinking is we can be breakeven." To break even, Intel Foundry only needs low- to mid-single-digit billions in annual external revenue, according to Zinsner. Most of 18A's volume will come from Intel's internal products, while 14A will require more external adoption. Intel's breakeven strategy also includes revenue from advanced packaging, mature nodes (like Intel 16), and partnerships with UMC and Tower. The company will continues to follow its 'smart capital' model, balancing internal and external wafer sourcing, and expects Foundry to compete for internal product demand to ensure efficiency and cost Tom's Hardware on Google News to get our up-to-date news, analysis, and reviews in your feeds. Make sure to click the Follow button. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Intel Stock Falls as Foundry Customers Hold Back
Intel's INTC) stock dipped after their CFO David Zinsner spoke at the J.P. Morgan tech conference. He admitted that, right now, outside interest in Intel's new foundry services is pretty thin. Even as they roll out the next-gen 18A node, most of the early volume is booked for Intel's own chipsthink the upcoming Panther Lakelanding before year-end. Warning! GuruFocus has detected 7 Warning Signs with INTC. Zinsner was quick to note that hitting break-even on the foundry side doesn't demand huge third-party ordersmid-single-digit billions in revenue should do itbut convincing external clients to trust Intel on IP protection and supply-chain security will take time. Investors reacted by driving INTC down to $21.26 on May 14, off about 1.9%, while AMD and TSMC climbed 5.8% and 0.7%, respectively. Price targets are all over the mapfrom $14 to $28.30with an average of $21.30 and a GuruFocus value of $23.50. On the leadership front, Zinsner had praise for new CEO Lip-Bu Tan's push to flatten the organization and get engineers back on the lab floor, closer to customer feedback. He hinted that this shift could turbo-charge Intel's AI roadmap by speeding up product cycles and tightening client collaboration. Why it matters: If Intel can't drum up external foundry business soon, it risks lagging behind AMD and TSMC just as demand for advanced nodes heats up. Investors will be watching for that first big outside deal and any signs of momentum in Q2's guidance. This article first appeared on GuruFocus.
