Intel and Arm Partner to Manufacture Mobile SoCs in Intel's Factories, Expanding Market Opportunities

Intel's chip manufacturing division, IFS, has announced a partnership with UK chip design firm Arm to enable the production of Arm-based smartphone chips and other products at Intel's factories. This collaboration is part of Intel's IDM 2.0 strategy, which involves investing globally in large-scale expansion, including in the US and the EU, to provide more balanced global supply chain support for IFS customers who are engaged in designing mobile SoCs based on Arm CPU cores.

The partnership will unlock Arm's leading computing product portfolio and world-class IP based on Intel's process technology. Arm partners will be able to take full advantage of Intel's open system foundry model, which goes beyond traditional wafer manufacturing to include packaging, software, and small chips.

Initially focused on mobile SoC design, this collaboration allows potential designs to expand to automotive, IoT, data centers, aerospace, and government applications. Arm customers designing the next generation of mobile SoCs will benefit from Intel's leading 18A process technology, which provides new breakthrough transistor technology to enhance power and performance, and benefits from IFS's strong manufacturing footprint, including production capacity in the US and EU.

According to Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger, "the need for computing power is constantly increasing due to the drive towards digitalization, but so far, customers without wafer factories have had limited choices for designing around the most advanced mobile technology." He added, "Intel's collaboration with Arm will expand IFS's market opportunities and open up new choices and methods for any fabless company seeking world-class CPU IP and an open system foundry with leading process technology."

IFS and Arm will carry out Design Technology Co-Optimization (DTCO), where chip design and process technology are optimized together to improve power, performance, area, and cost (PPAC) for Arm cores targeting Intel's 18A process technology. Intel's 18A introduces two breakthrough technologies, PowerVia for optimizing power delivery and RibbonFET GAA transistor architecture for optimizing performance and power.

The partnership will also develop mobile reference designs to demonstrate software and system knowledge for foundry customers. As the industry evolves from DTCO to System Technology Co-Optimization (STCO), Arm and IFS will collaborate to optimize the platform from "applications and software" to "packaging and silicon" using Intel's unique open system foundry model. This news is relevant to the company's supply chain and product portfolio, as it provides new choices and methods for designing world-class CPU IP and accessing an open system foundry with leading process technology.