Intel will start producing ARM chips to boost foundry business

However, Intel’s foundry will provide licensed customers with access to ARM’s off-the-shelf Artisian physical IP, including POP IP, and likely won’t support ARM licensees who use customized ARM core technology in their mobile processors. August 16, 2016 is when Intel finally admitted it had lost the race in the mobile chipset market and announced a deal which would allow the company to build ARM-based chipsets for mobile and Internet of Things devices.

Apple’s cutting-edge A-series chips, used in the iPhone and iPad, are based on ARM architecture. The expansion of Intel’s custom manufacturing business should help keep its factories busy, which has not been the case lately, with PC and mobile chip shipments declining.

“This will allow Intel to compete with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing and Samsung foundries for the business of the likes of Qualcomm and Apple”, Abhinav Davuluri, equity analyst for Morningstar in Chicago, wrote in an online note. In particular, today’s partnership could mean that Intel ends up making processors for Apple’s iPhones and iPads.

That said, ARM owns several processor core designs. Intel has partnered with ANSYS, Cadence, Mentor Graphics and Synopsys previously and is making chips for LG Electronics and Netronome to name a few.

Intel Corp., the world’s biggest semiconductor maker, said it’s licensing technology from rival ARM Holdings Plc, a move to win more customers for its business that manufactures chips for other companies.

“ARM’s Artisan IP can now be blended with Intel’s incredibly tiny 10nm process to achieve” best-in-class PPA (power, performance, area)” chipsets.