Intel Discusses Technology Roadmap: 14A in Risk Production by 2028, Then Focus on 10A and 7A
Intel has provided new details about its production roadmap during the J.P. Morgan Global Technology, Media and Communications Conference, where CEO Lip-Bu Tan outlined the next steps in advanced lithographic technologies. The focus of the presentation was primarily on the 14A production process, which is set to be a crucial milestone for Intel Foundry in the third-party foundry market.
According to the executive, Intel expects to begin the risk production phase of the 14A process in 2028, with high-volume production slated to start in 2029. This timing, as intended by the company, will overlap with TSMC's A14 technology, identified as the main direct competitor in the so-called "angstrom era."
The 14A process represents a particularly important transition because it will be the first production process to make extensive use of ASML's High-NA EUV systems, which are considered today’s most advanced lithographic tools available to the semiconductor industry. Intel also claims that the development of 14A is progressing more smoothly compared to what happened with 18A, thanks to better initial yields and reduced production complexity. Currently, the 14A process is at the PDK 0.5 phase, which has already been shared with some partners.
The PDK 0.9 version, described by Tan as a kind of "Holy Grail" for customers, is expected to arrive in October: it will be the one that allows external partners to finalize designs and production requirements in view of future commercialization. Intel specified that internal teams will receive the new PDK before external customers, so they can verify the quality and maturity of the platform.
During the event, the CEO also confirmed the start of development for future 10A and 7A technologies (1 and 0.7 nanometers), which will officially enter the company's roadmap after the completion of current preliminary phases. The stated goal is to build a long-term strategy capable of reassuring customers about the technological continuity of Intel Foundry, partly replicating the approach adopted by TSMC with its industrial partners. According to Tan, many companies evaluate a foundry's multi-year roadmap before committing to strategic agreements, especially in an industry where design and industrialization timelines can extend for several years. For this reason, Intel has chosen to publicly showcase technologies that are still far from commercialization.
The executive also hinted that several potential customers have already expressed interest in the 14A process, though he did not name them. In recent months, however, the "TeraFab" project linked to Tesla, SpaceX, and xAI has been identified as a possible user of Intel's 14A technology, fueling expectations around the revival of the U.S. company's foundry activities.
Meanwhile, Intel continues to push the 18A process, currently used for the Core Ultra Series 3 "Panther Lake" and Core Series 3 "Wildcat Lake" processors. The latter was recently launched into the Chinese market alongside budget-friendly notebooks produced by companies like ASUS and HP. Recent rumors also indicate that Intel is trying to encourage PC manufacturers to adopt 18A-based solutions more rapidly, while part of the production capacity of the Intel 7 process would be primarily allocated to higher-margin datacenter processors, such as Emerald Rapids and Granite Rapids. This decision reflects the company's difficulties in fully meeting the demand for previous production technologies while simultaneously needing to accelerate the transition to more advanced technologies.