Intel Foundries Able to Produce ARM-Based Chips Under New Licensing Deal

At today's Intel Developer Forum, Intel announced a new licensing deal with ARM, which will see Intel taking advantage of ARM technology in an effort to attract more manufacturing companies to its factories.

Under the terms of the deal, Intel plans to allow third-party semiconductor companies to use its 10-nanometer production lines for manufacturing ARM-based chips for smartphones, expanding the production options available to companies like Apple.

a9processor
Apple currently produces custom-designed ARM-based chips that are manufactured by companies like Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC), but with Intel and ARM's new licensing deal, Apple (and other manufacturers) could potentially use Intel to fabricate its chips.

LG Electronics has already inked a deal with Intel and will use Intel's foundry business to manufacture 10-nanometer chips for future LG devices. It is not clear if Apple will strike a deal with Intel, as rumors suggest Apple already has an agreement in place with TSMC to produce 10-nanometer A11 chips destined for the 2017 iPhone and other 2017 devices, but the possibility exists for future chips.

TSMC is also said to be the sole manufacturer of the A10 chip that will be used in the upcoming iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus.

Tags: Arm, Intel

Popular Stories

New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 18

20 New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 18.2

Monday December 16, 2024 8:55 am PST by
Apple released iOS 18.2 in the second week of December, bringing the second round of Apple Intelligence features to iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 models. This update brings several major advancements to Apple's AI integration, including completely new image generation tools and a range of Visual Intelligence-based enhancements. Apple has added a handful of new non-AI related feature controls as...
iphone 16 apple intelligence

Apple Drops Plans for iPhone Hardware Subscription Service

Wednesday December 18, 2024 11:39 am PST by
Apple is no longer planning to launch a hardware subscription service that would let customers "subscribe" to get a new iPhone each year, reports Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Gurman first shared rumors about Apple's work on a hardware subscription service back in 2022, and at the time, he said that Apple wanted to develop a simple system that would allow customers to pay a monthly fee to gain...
iPhone 17 Pro Dual Tone Feature 1

iPhone 17 Pro Rumored to Stick With 'Triangular' Camera Design

Wednesday December 18, 2024 2:36 am PST by
Contrary to recent reports, the iPhone 17 Pro will not feature a horizontal camera layout, according to the leaker known as "Instant Digital." In a new post on Weibo, the leaker said that a source has confirmed that while the appearance of the back of the iPhone 17 Pro has indeed changed, the layout of the three cameras is "still triangular," rather than the "horizontal bar spread on the...
elevation lab airtag battery

Your AirTag's Battery Will Last for Up to 10 Years With Elevation Lab's New TimeCapsule Enclosure

Wednesday December 18, 2024 10:05 am PST by
Elevation Lab today announced the launch of TimeCapsule, an innovative and simple solution for increasing the battery life of Apple's AirTag. Priced at $20, TimeCapsule is an AirTag enclosure that houses two AA batteries that offer 14x more battery capacity than the CR2032 battery that the AirTag runs on. It works by attaching the AirTag's upper housing to the built-in custom contact in the...
apple tv 4k yellow bg feature

New Apple TV Rumored to Launch Next Year With These Features

Tuesday December 17, 2024 9:02 am PST by
The current Apple TV 4K was released more than two years ago, so the streaming device is becoming due for a hardware upgrade soon. Fortunately, it was recently rumored that a new Apple TV will launch at some point next year. Below, we recap rumors about the next-generation Apple TV. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman last week reported that Apple has been working on its own combined Wi-Fi and...
blackmagic vision pro

Blackmagic Debuts $30K 3D Camera for Capturing Video for Vision Pro

Monday December 16, 2024 4:17 pm PST by
Blackmagic today announced that its URSA Cine Immersive camera is now available for pre-order, with deliveries set to start late in the first quarter of 2025. Blackmagic says that this is the world's first commercial camera system designed to capture 3D content for the Vision Pro. The URSA Cine Immersive camera was first introduced in June, but it has not been available for purchase until...
mac pro creativity

Apple Launched the Controversial 'Trashcan' Mac Pro 11 Years Ago Today

Thursday December 19, 2024 7:00 pm PST by
Apple launched the controversial "trashcan" Mac Pro eleven years ago today, introducing one of its most criticized designs that persisted through a period of widespread discontentment with the Mac lineup. The redesign took the Mac Pro in an entirely new direction, spearheaded by a polished aluminum cylindrical design that became unofficially dubbed the "trashcan" in the Mac community. All of ...
iPhone 17 Slim Feature

'iPhone 17 Air' With 'Major' Design Changes and 19-Inch MacBook Detailed in New Report

Sunday December 15, 2024 9:47 am PST by
Apple is planning a series of "major design" and "format changes" for iPhones over the next few years, according to The Wall Street Journal's Aaron Tilley and Yang Jie. The paywalled report published today corroborated the widely-rumored "iPhone 17 Air" with an "ultrathin" design that is thinner than current iPhone models. The report did not mention a specific measurement, but previous...

Top Rated Comments

Michael Goff Avatar
109 months ago
Intel iPhone....me want!!!
A combo computer Intel core plus ARM would be nice, best of both worlds.
That's not even what the article is about.
Score: 17 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Michael Goff Avatar
109 months ago
Well since we are in a discussion about that ...it was implied............................but you proved me there are people that needs to be told everything.

Last iPhone with 2 different chip showed that there are differences in manufacturing, so YES Intel to me means a better chip it'll change very little..but it will change ;) to each his own i guess, no need to act like i said something irritating!

For the record, i will also tell you that i am very calm ;););)
You're the guy who decided to not put in all the information and condescend to people who didn't understand your drivel. That's the irritating thing. Not that you don't understand the minute differences between a Samsung A9 and a TSMC one.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
gpat Avatar
109 months ago
This has no implications whatsoever with Intel compatibility. Your iPhone will continue to run exactly the same applications. Get a clue.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Michael Goff Avatar
109 months ago
I specified....editing..i knew a smart one would comment without understanding.... it took 3 replies...
Maybe you should be a little more specific.

Also, Intel making the chips will change very little.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
DakotaGuy Avatar
109 months ago
ATM, it's only Microsoft "defending" the PC platform now... because they failed to make a new operating system designed for Mobile (aka their MS Courier concept).
[doublepost=1471381577][/doublepost]
Well I'm glad somebody is because Apple seems on the verge of turning the Mac into a hobby business at best and I still need a traditional PC to do work on.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Menel Avatar
109 months ago
Called it ages ago. Intel has the leading technology when it comes to fabs and is under utilising them due to the slowdown in the sales of PC's. Each new shrinkage requires more and more capital than the previous process so if you are not really growing (outside of server based chips) then the only option is to open up your foundries.

Apple's huge cash reserves and massive demand for chips based on the best possible tech + Intel's leading foundries = was going to happen eventually. Intel is no longer competing in the SoC market so it makes sense. Good news for us consumers, Intel's 14nm process is the best in the business and ahead of anything TSMC, Samsung or GloFo have, so better performance + lower battery life and with the potential for a massive order from Apple they will have the cash needed to stay ahead of the pack at the 10nm and 7nm levels. No doubt this Intel Modem in the new iPhone 7 is just Apple testing the waters.
Years ago it may have been a huge boon. There was huge disparity in the lithography process of Intel vs everyone else. 45nm vs 22nm or whatever it was a few yeasr ago.

But not so anymore. I don't follow this segment much anymore, but a quick google search shows Intel's latest and greatest 6th gen processors are on 14nm technology, but very simliarly is Apple's A9 using Samsung's 14nm.

And there is probably some difference between the two different 14nm processes... and while technologically/scientifically significant. At the end user level, I feel like it's probably splitting hairs.

So this is a whole lot of ... meh to me. Too late. The mobile movement by Android/iOS gave urgency and funding and motivation for so many other fabs to catch up, keep up, and close the gap.

Is Intel running scared? They need some of this mobile cash flow they've been missing out on...?
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)