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[Little Chicken]

https://www.theverge.com/2024/2/21/24079336/microsoft-intel-chip-partnership-foundry-tsmc

Intel will be producing custom chips, designed by Microsoft for Microsoft, as part of a deal that Intel says is worth more than $15 billion. Intel announcedthe partnership during its Intel Foundry event today. Although neither company specified what the chips would be used for, Bloomberg noted today that Microsoft has been planning in-house designs for both processors and AI accelerators.

The chips will use Intel's 18A process, which has been a big part of its road map since the company brought CEO Pat Gelsinger back to turn things around. The company is counting on its chip foundry services to put it back on top of the chipmaking world, and it seems that Microsoft will be the first major customer for this project.

https://www.theverge.com/2024/2/15/24073723/microsoft-xbox-next-gen-hardware-phil-spencer-handheld

 

[Little Chicken]

Can a mod please fix the title

 

[DeepEnigma]

That's a large node for mobile.

 

[hlm666]

someone is having a fat finger day

I'm teasing.

 

[Coherenthy]

$15 Gillion?

 

[dem]

Very likely AI hardware for azure

 

[Syphon Filter]

Can a mod please fix the title

you love your emoji's bro lol.

 

[digital_ghost]

$15 Gillion?

Microsoft has so much money, they have to invent new levels of currency.

 

[Hero of Spielberg]

$15 Gillion?

It’s a seriously BIG deal

 

[Robochobo]

$15 Gillion?

15 whole Gilligan's Islands. Imagine.

 

[LordOfChaos]

It's likely the two AI chip projects at MSFT: Azure Maia and Azure Cobalt. Not Xbox related.

 

[LordOfChaos]

That's a large node for mobile.

Unless I'm missing a joke, Intel 18A is ~ TSMC 2nm, cutting edge for the time of launch and about as small as you can go for the year of release

A, for Angstroms, as in post nanometers (all naming is bullshit anyway)

 

[Unknown Soldier]

$15 Godzillion dollars wew

 

[DeepEnigma]

Unless I'm missing a joke, Intel 18A is ~ TSMC 2nm, cutting edge for the time of launch and about as small as you can go for the year of release

Yes, lol. It was a joke based on the gazillion size error.

 

[Bumblebeetuna]

 

[diffusionx]

That's a large node for mobile.

No, these numbers are completely meaningless at this point

 

[LordOfChaos]

15 Gamer Nexus's, Custome, wow

 

[Buggy Loop]

I have a couple of theories which I already detailed in the past and got called crazy… so let’s just say it purely AI for now..

 

[Leonidas]

Hoping its for Xbox, so that Arc graphics might be saved.

 

[Hero of Spielberg]

A 'custome' chip as well ...

 

[Rentahamster]

Fifteen...geeeellion dollars!

 

[Husky]

Utterly unprecedented. No government or corporation has ever spent even one gazillion dollars before.

 

[TheThreadsThatBindUs]

Lol, I don't even think all the money in the world reaches up to a gazillion dollars.

 

[Imtjnotu]

Probably surface related

 

[buenoblue]

Not bashing you to much op, but why dont people read the title before posting lol ,

 

[Mr Reasonable]

Not sure if anyone else noticed but I think the title might have an error in it.

 

[ThatStupidLion]

Thought it was going to be 15 gazillion dollars

 

[Gudji]

Holy shit next EX-box about to become most powerful of console of all time.

 

[Panajev2001a]

Unless I'm missing a joke, Intel 18A is ~ TSMC 2nm, cutting edge for the time of launch and about as small as you can go for the year of release

A, for Angstroms, as in post nanometers (all naming is bullshit anyway)

On this foundry topic I have been reading Chip War… very very interesting and well done book:

Chip War: The Fight for the World's Most Critical Technology https://amzn.eu/d/4ae8pWx

I see how strategic it is to bring back big foundries in the U.S. and finally they are doing something about it, but I still think that pure foundries like TSMC have more and more of an edge as they truly do not compete with their clients this limited the appeal of Samsung as a foundry too.

This is a good chip deal though and should help. Probably both companies are charging part of the bill to the government through some rebates / incentive of some sort too.

 

[StreetsofBeige]

What a steal.

$15 billion Guinean bucks is only about $2 million US.

 

[azertydu91]

 

[SportsFan581]

Hopefully Intel is very successful with its new fabs. That might help gamers in the end, because less contention for fab space at TSMC might get the prices down.

 

[S0ULZB0URNE]

Portable using intel confirmed

 

[lh032]

INTEL APU AI AZURE CLOUD FOR NEXT GEN EXBOX!!!???

 

[King Dazzar]

Ah, Gn, the new Green currency.

 

[UltimaKilo]

Microsoft designing their own chips is really interesting. Very good for the industry, maybe someone will finally catch up to Apple.

 

[intbal]

Zune UHD incoming

 

[Ozriel]

maybe someone will finally catch up to Apple.

Nuvia’s already (supposedly) there with their upcoming Snapdragon chipset, and Nvidia’s getting in the ARM game next year.

Apple probably won’t have that crazy lead for that much longer.

 

[UltimaKilo]

Nuvia’s already (supposedly) there with their upcoming Snapdragon chipset, and Nvidia’s getting in the ARM game next year.

Apple probably won’t have that crazy lead for that much longer.

I hope you’re right, but it will still be a couple of years. We need a lot more competition in the space.

 

[mrBarrelNut]

It's likely the two AI chip projects at MSFT: Azure Maia and Azure Cobalt. Not Xbox related.

Probably something else. Maia should be available in 2024 and is being built on a TSMC 5nm prcess. Not sure about Cobalt though.

Microsoft unveils first AI chip, Maia 100, and Cobalt CPU

Microsoft follows in the custom silicon footsteps of Google's TPU and Amazon's Graviton.

www.zdnet.com

Unless they are planning next gen versions to be released in 2025 using Intel 18A process.

 

[ArcaneNLSC]

$15 Godzillion dollars wew

I think this would be the only amount that could compete with Dollari-doos

 

[GreatnessRD]

Hoping its for Xbox, so that Arc graphics might be saved.

And hopefully Battlemage isn't toilet water. Alchemist Drivers have recently received an upgrade, so that's good news for the future, hopefully. Project Pat and Intel trying to punch back. Love to see it. Would definitely be great for AMD competition if it was for the next Xbox.

 

[Three]

Microsoft recently had a contract end with Qualcomm on ARM chips. They are going to dive heavily into Microsoft ARM chips for AI, Cloud, and devices manufactured by intel. I'm willing to bet that they finally caved

AMD and Nvidia to join Qualcomm in the Windows Arm(s) race

Leaving Intel sulking in the corner, playing with its own toys.

www.pcgamer.com

 

[Kokoloko85]

15 whole Gilligan's Islands. Imagine.

I bet Bill Gates loves the idea of that many islands the creep

 

[HighPoly]

NEXT Xbox as powerfull as RTX 4090 !

 

[Rusty Shackelford]

 

[Three]

Unless they are planning next gen versions to be released in 2025 using Intel 18A process.

Microsoft are likely just using Intel to create Microsoft ARM chips:

Intel just made it easier to make Arm chips in its own fabs

Agreement starts with phone-style SoCs but could scale to chips for PCs.

www.pcgamer.com

This will likely be for everything MS related from that point forward.

 

[Audiophile]

$15 Gazillion!

 

[VolticArchangel]

HeisenbergFX4 Is this for their cloud compute/surface or Xbox?

 

[HeisenbergFX4]

HeisenbergFX4 Is this for their cloud compute/surface or Xbox?

No clue honestly