Intel wants to secure Microsoft, Tesla, Qualcomm, and NVIDIA as advanced packaging customers

Intel has secured TSMC's former Senior Vice President of Corporate Strategy Development, Wei-Jen Lo, in a shock move in the semiconductor industry, with the latest reports that Intel is now gunning for big US tech companies like NVIDIA, Tesla, Microsoft, and Qualcomm as new advanced packaging customers.

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In a fresh report from DigiTimes, we're hearing that Intel will be relying on Wei-Jen Lo who has experience in both Intel and TSMC wafer manufacturing R&D and management, to handle orders from US clients at TSMC's new Arizona semiconductor fab and related advanced packaging work for Intel.

This move is expected to include orders from Microsoft and Tesla in the short term, and then NVIDIA and Qualcomm in the future, ensuring a "smooth transition between the front-end and back-end". Wei-Jen Lo's expertise in managing the wafer fab and equipment supply chain will be used to "rapidly" improve yields and efficiency for Intel Foundry.

• Read more: Intel Foundry's future depends on securing customers for its Intel 14A node
• Read more: Intel Foundry rumored with possible Intel 18A node orders with Intel, Google, NVIDIA

All of the US customers that TSMC Arizona works with, including NVIDIA, AMD, and Apple, would eventually fall into using Intel Foundry for packaging services, which would see Intel Foundry attracting other companies in the future. Right now, even companies like NVIDIA have to send the wafers that are fabbed at TSMC Arizona back to TSMC in Taiwan for advanced packaging, adding more costs and time to get the product.

However, if Intel Foundry steps in with advanced packaging services, it will provide US companies with access to semiconductor and advanced packaging services in Arizona, without the need of shipping silicon back to Taiwan for advanced packaging at TSMC.