Intel to re-enter foundry business

Deja vu

Chip giant Intel said at its Developer Forum in San Francisco that it will license ARM technology and offer smartphone makers the chance to make microprocessors using its 10 nanometer fabrication technique.

This is quite an irony, given that it’s ARM technology that’s damaged Intel’s credibility as sales of PCs continue to fall.

It’s a further irony as there are strong rumours that ARM chips will be released later this year targeting Intel’s data centre business.

LG Electronics has signed up for the Intel plan and this of course pitches Intel as a competitor to Taiwanese giant TSMC and GlobalFoundries (GloFo).

It isn’t Intel’s foray into the foundry business however. The former HP used to have Intel make its RISC chips back in the 2000s.

The move means that Intel can mop up some of its production capacity with smartphone makers, provided, that is, that they’re interested in having the chip giant make their chips.