Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan has held discussions with AMD chief Lisa Su regarding potential areas of cooperation between the longtime semiconductor rivals, Tan disclosed during an October 24 fireside chat with the Chinese American Semiconductor Professional Association. While Tan did not publicly detail the exact topics discussed or announce a formal agreement, he emphasized his determination to reclaim market leadership in CPUs and steer Intel toward a customer-first turnaround. [1][2]
Tan outlined plans to shift Intel away from rigid roadmaps and toward tailored silicon, pointing to Xeon processors, application-specific integrated circuits, physical AI, and advanced packaging as critical growth targets. On the manufacturing side, Tan stated that Intel's 18A process has reached volume production, while the upcoming 14A node is advancing with a version 0.9 process design kit arriving ahead of planned volume manufacturing in early 2027. [1][2]
Any new collaboration would build on existing joint efforts between the rivals, who previously formed the x86 Ecosystem Advisory Group in October 2024 and recently integrated AMD's ZenDNN optimizations into Intel's open-source oneDNN library for AI workloads. Even so, Intel faces the challenge of rebuilding trust with prospective foundry customers, with Tan noting that clients had raised long lists of past operational shortcomings before expanding their commitments. [1]
