MediaTek is the fourth most important company when it comes to chip design and, according to the agreement, it will rely on to Intel for the production of chips dedicated to smart edge devices. MediaTek would sign the agreement primarily to diversify the supply chain and leverage Intel Fabs in both the US and Europe, as Intel Foundry Services is present in both regions.
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As anticipated, MediaTek will make use, at least initially, of the Intel 16 production process, based on the 22FFL (FinFet Low Power) node of 2018, optimized to produce cheap and low-consumption chips that are still able to provide high performance, perfect for devices such as smart edge ones. that MediaTek is planning. IFS also supports third-party Electronic Design Automation (EDA) software, making it even easier for chip designers to use Intel's manufacturing services.
The agreement with MediaTek is definitely an important step and, as noted by Kevin Krewell of Tirias Research, it is “an excellent opportunity for IFS to build a true foundry-based business. There will almost certainly be problems to address along the way, so IFS needs customers who want to contribute to the project ”. The Santa Clara house has already invested 20 billion dollars in the Intel Foundry Services program and it is likely that new investments will arrive in the future: we will see if, over the months, other big names will rely on Intel for the production of chips, making it grow this new business even more.
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