Reports have been building about Apple potentially partnering with Intel to produce future chips, and according to The Wall Street Journal, a deal has officially been reached.
Robbie Whelan and Rolfe Winkler write at The Wall Street Journal:
Apple and Intel have reached a preliminary agreement for Intel to manufacture some of the chips that power Apple devices, according to people familiar with the matter.
Intensive talks between the two companies have been ongoing for more than a year, and they hammered out a formal deal in recent months, these people said. Bloomberg News first reported the talks Tuesday.
It’s still unclear which Apple products Intel would make chips for, these people said. Apple ships more than 200 million iPhones per year as well as millions of iPads and Mac computers.
Ming-Chi Kuo first reported last fall that Apple and Intel were exploring partnering on future M-class chips for Macs and iPads. At the time, Kuo said Intel might start producing chips as early as 2027.
Analyst Jeff Pu followed up in December saying that the potential partnership could extend to producing iPhone chips too. That wouldn’t happen until 2028 though.
Then earlier this week, Bloomberg reported that Apple was exploring partnerships with both Intel and Samsung to diversify its chip production pipeline. Currently, Apple is heavily dependent on TSMC for new chips.
Besides the obvious competitive advantages of diversifying chip production, an Intel deal could also help bolster Apple’s reputation with the US government. Intel is now partly owned by the US, and the Trump administration has reportedly been making efforts to secure new deals for the company.
Per the WSJ report, the US government played a key role in the Apple deal. “President Trump personally advocated for Intel to Cook in a meeting at the White House, according to people familiar with the matter.”
If Apple does intend to use Intel for 2027 chips, we’ll likely hear more specifics about the agreement soon.
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