Oh man, where do I even start? Intel just had this thing, Direct Connect 2025, and let me tell you, it was a bit of a whirlwind. So, their new CEO, Lip-Bu Tan—I mean, second time he’s up there, trying to breathe some life back into the foundry. Not gonna lie, it feels like he’s got a lot on his plate.
Anyway—what they’re doing is throwing out this updated roadmap. They’ve got this new 14A process happening, which is apparently like, two steps ahead of TSMC, or something. They’re saying it’s this big power-efficient thing called PowerDirect. Sounds fancy, right? I just imagine all these transistors getting powered up like they’re fueled on espresso.
There’s this pic that just screams “cutting-edge,” or maybe I’m just easily impressed. Either way, it’s all about making sure everyone’s eyes are on Intel, not on their competitors.
Let’s not forget about 18A. They’re rolling out these new flavors, 18A-P and 18A-PT. I don’t know, feels like they’re taking a page from a gourmet menu or something—it’s all about performance with these, supposedly way better than the original. They have this crazy new bonding tech where chiplets are getting all chummy, sounds like they’re throwing a microchip party. Foveros Direct 3D with a tiny pitch, less than 5 microns. I can’t even picture that, honestly.
Then there’s more risk production happening with 18A, whatever that means. They’re aiming for high volume at the end of the year. They keep saying it’s to rival TSMC’s stuff, so I guess we’ll see whose chips are the coolest soon enough.
Oh, and the 20A? Yeah, they’re ditching that. Moving on to bigger, brighter things, I guess. Apparently, it’s all about cozying up to partners now—Synopsys, Cadence, you name it. The feel-good story of the year: Intel partnering up to make everything a-ok.
And honestly, who can keep up with all this chip drama? It’s like one big tech soap opera, but with more silicon and less melodrama.
