Intel eyes 6 and 3 nanometers at TSMC for Xe manufacturing

In the summer of 2020, Intel will return to the market for dedicated graphics cards with the Xe family. Long before launch, as early as December 2019, however, childhood diseases in the form of substandard efficiency were predicted, probably as a result of Xe becoming one of the first products to be manufactured on the company’s problematic manufacturing technology 10 nanometers.

Intel has since unveiled plans for the next-generation Xe of 7 nanometers, codenamed Ponte Vecchio, which is expected to be released in limited edition by the end of 2021. Transistor density in manufacturing technology is expected to correspond to the next 5 nanometers from TSMC and Samsung.

With the severely delayed transition to the new manufacturing technology, Intel has created a capacity problem, which is why the company now, according to a small Taiwanese magazine, is rumored to discuss the production of Xe on fresh 6 nanometers and future 3 nanometers at TSMC.

The report paints a scenario where the first generation Xe of 10 nanometers paves the way for TSMC-manufactured Xe circuits of 6 nanometers in early 2021, for a transition to 3 nanometers the following year. This would free up much-needed capacity at Intel of 10 nanometers, which can instead be used for more complex CPU manufacturing. The first generation Xe circuits of 10 nanometers would thus not be a volume product, despite reports of successes in the problematic technology.

It is worth mentioning that TSMC’s manufacturing technology of 6 nanometers should be compared to Intel’s “10nm +”, on which, among others, the CPU families Tiger Lake and Alder Lake are based. These families are expected to see the light of day in 2021, which means that rumors about Xe manufacturing at TSMC are rooted in the fact that Intel would prefer to focus on CPU manufacturing to meet demand.

Regardless of the manufacturing location for graphics circuits in the Xe family, Intel is confident in the long run – as recently as March 4, an ambition was expressed to take back the lead by 5 nanometers, but no earlier than 2023.