Intel Reportedly Lost a Steep Discount at TSMC With Dismissive Comments About Taiwan

A new report from Reuters is shedding light on behind-the-scenes tensions between Intel and TSMC that might have caused a rift. Intel has been using TSMC to fab some of its chips for several years now and is using it exclusively for its current desktop and mobile architectures. Apparently, it's paying full price for those wafers, thanks to comments made by its CEO, Pat Gelsinger.

The Reuters report says it's based on four sources who have knowledge of an arrangement between the two companies, which included a hefty discount on 3nm wafers. Reuters says TSMC was offering Intel a steep 40% discount on the the wafers, which it says cost Intel $23,000 each. That deal was being floated until Gelsinger made disparaging comments about Taiwan in May 2021, when he said, "You don't want all of your eggs in the basket of a Taiwan fab." He ...