Samsung Foundry Wins Intel 8nm Chip Order
According to industry reports, Samsung Electronics' foundry unit has secured Intel's 8nm chip manufacturing order, adding another major client to its mature advanced-node portfolio after Nvidia. Analysts say this win strengthens Samsung Foundry's momentum in orders for nodes where yield and cost structures are stable.
Insiders indicate that Samsung is in the final stages of preparing for mass production of Intel's Platform Controller Hub (PCH) chips, with certification expected to complete soon and volume production slated to begin in 2026. Intel has shifted PCH production from its 14nm line in Austin, Texas, to Samsung's 8nm process, with manufacturing concentrated at Samsung's Hwaseong facility in South Korea.
Given Intel's over 75% share of the global PC CPU market, this move is highly strategic. Analysts note that entrusting Samsung with key platform chips underscores confidence in the maturity and reliability of Samsung's 8nm process. While not cutting-edge, Samsung's 8nm node occupies a strategic mid-tier position, balancing performance, yield stability, and cost—making it ideal for logic chips, including PCH, GPUs, and certain high-performance computing (HPC) workloads that are less density-sensitive.
With demand for bleeding-edge nodes slowing, foundries worldwide are commercializing mature advanced processes, and Intel's long-term partnership with Samsung reinforces the latter's credibility in the 8nm space. Previously, Samsung also won Nvidia's GPU orders for the next-generation Nintendo Switch 2, with production on Samsung's 8nm node set to begin in 2025, reducing Nintendo's historic reliance on TSMC for core console chips. Nvidia has since expanded collaboration beyond Switch 2, commissioning Samsung to produce additional cost-efficient 8nm GPUs. Switch 2 shipments are projected to reach around 20 million units by March 2026, representing a key volume driver for Samsung's 8nm line.
Beyond consumer electronics, Samsung continues to grow its 8nm client base through close partnerships with design solution providers (DSPs), which offer overseas clients end-to-end services from design to manufacturing. Through this DSP network, Samsung has gained new 8nm system-on-chip projects, including HPC-targeted chips, helping maximize mature-node utilization. Currently, Samsung collaborates with about 13 DSPs worldwide, a turnkey model that allows Samsung to attract international clients lacking in-house design capabilities.
Analysts emphasize that building a large-scale client base for 8nm carries strategic significance for Samsung Foundry. Consistent delivery on optimized nodes enhances customer confidence and supports follow-on orders for more advanced nodes. This momentum comes as the global foundry landscape undergoes major shifts. With TSMC's advanced nodes in high demand from Apple, Nvidia, and others, capacity limits and pricing pressures are pushing companies to explore alternatives. Samsung's larger capacity flexibility and pricing leeway make it an increasingly viable choice.
TrendForce projects that TSMC will hold a 70.2% share of the global foundry market by Q2 2025, highlighting the concentration of cutting-edge capacity. In this context, Samsung's ability to profitably leverage mature nodes like 8nm while improving yields on 4nm, 5nm, and eventually 2nm processes is seen as key to restoring foundry profitability. Analysts caution that long-term recovery still depends on the stability of next-generation nodes, with around 60% yield generally considered the threshold for economically viable mass production. Even so, the recent surge in 8nm orders indicates that Samsung's strategy to rebuild capacity utilization and customer confidence through mature nodes is paying off.
