An unusual alliance between competitors is part of the ongoing news around unprecedented ship shortages and problems in the microprocessor industry.
Today, Rob Thubron at TechSpot is suggesting that based on recent remarks by the heads of both companies, Nvidia GPUs could be made by Intel in the near future.
Citing a Tom’s Hardware interview and other sources, Thubron suggests that Nvidia is planning a more detailed strategy based on “layers and nodes” to get a better handle on chip production in general.
Apparently, an initiative called Intel’s Foundry Services (IFS) initiative is an offer to partner on this type of production.
“Intel Foundry Services (IFS) has partnered with the industry-leading IP partners to form its IFS Accelerator – IP Alliance,” write Intel spokespersons. “Partners in this alliance collaborate with IFS to enable designers to access high-quality IPs, supporting their design needs and project schedule, while optimizing for performance, power, and area (PPA).”
Nvidia head honcho Jensen Huang has expressed confidence in the plan involving a main competitor.
“We share roadmaps, of course, under confidentiality and a very selective channel of communications. The industry has just learned how to work in that way.”
Elsewhere, industry analysts show that chip companies are facing multiple significant bottlenecks, not just a simple scarcity.
As legislators struggle to get the U.S. government to sign off on a $52 billion aid package, another TechSpot writer, Shawn Knight, writes that it won’t just take money to conquer the chip shortage.
Things like clean rooms and permits and other logistical issues apply, Knight says.
“Chipmakers are spending money hand over fist to boost capacity in an effort to meet the global surge in demand for semiconductors,” Knight writes in a summary of the scenario. “Unfortunately, it’s not an endeavor that an infusion of cash can solve overnight as supply chain partners are dealing with shortages of their own.”
Competitors working together might be a good step in getting the global microprocessor market back on its feet, but we still have a certain way to go in the wake of the perfect storm that created the scarcity – trade tension, pandemic, etc. Keep that in mind vis a vis your portfolio and overall investment strategy.