Big quote: Qualcomm is keeping its reliance on established contract chip manufacturers TSMC and Samsung Electronics, citing insufficient production technology from Intel to meet its needs for advanced chips. Chief Executive Cristiano Amon made the company's position clear during a recent interview with Bloomberg, stating that Team Blue "is not an option today," despite expressing interest in considering Intel as a supplier if its manufacturing capabilities improve. "We would like Intel to be an option," he said.
For now, Qualcomm's Snapdragon X chips continue to be fabricated by TSMC using its N4 manufacturing process. These chips, which power a new generation of Arm-based laptops, have demonstrated levels of energy efficiency and performance that not only match but sometimes exceed comparable Intel hardware.
As Qualcomm's processors become increasingly competitive in the thin-and-light notebook sector, Amon's remarks cast doubt on Intel's ability to recover its former status as a top chipmaker in the near term. The firm has staked its turnaround on growing its foundry business, courting other chip designers, such as Qualcomm, to utilize its fabrication plants. That strategy, however, hinges on attracting large external customers to use its latest process nodes – a challenge made starker by Qualcomm's current reservations.
Intel's roadmap depends in part on developing future nodes, such as 18A and 14A. However, the company disclosed in July that it might pause or abandon 14A development if it fails to secure enough third-party business or meet key milestones. There are also open questions about the viability of the 18A process, which was intended as Intel's return to technological leadership but is reportedly still facing yield issues.
Amon's statement is especially notable given the supply chain dynamics of the semiconductor industry. Ironically, Intel's own next-generation Nova Lake products are expected to combine production from both TSMC's N2 process and Intel's own 18A node.
Meanwhile, Qualcomm is undergoing its own transformation. The company, which derives most of its revenue from smartphone processors, has expanded aggressively into markets such as automotive electronics. Earlier the same day of Amon's remarks, Qualcomm announced a self-driving technology suite for BMW's newly revealed iX3 SUV, targeting a projected $22 billion in annual automotive and connected devices revenue by 2029.
Despite the current limitations, Amon left the door open to a future partnership with Intel should its production capabilities become more competitive. For the time being, though, TSMC and Samsung continue to be Qualcomm's foundry partners of choice, and Intel's ambitions remain unfulfilled.