Intel's Tan floats AMD cooperation, but no project is confirmed

Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan has talked with AMD CEO Lisa Su about possible cooperation, but neither executive has said what the two companies might make together.¹ That is the whole confirmed story so far: a conversation, not a project.

The pair are not strangers to teamwork. Intel and AMD, along with other tech firms, set up the x86 Ecosystem Advisory Group in October 2024 to coordinate changes to their shared processor architecture, which helps software developers support chips from both.¹ AMD has also folded its ZenDNN optimizations into Intel’s open-source oneDNN library for CPU-based PyTorch inference, meaning running AI models on the processor itself.¹

So where could a new deal land? Tan’s own plans offer clues. He said Intel must “reclaim the leadership in CPU” and is tailoring chips to individual customer needs, an area he is “double, triple down” on.¹ The foundry side is another candidate. Intel’s 18A process is in volume production, and its next-generation 14A is on the way: the 0.5 process design kit (the rulebook chip designers build against) is out, 0.9 is expected next, and 1.0 for volume production is slated for early 2027.¹ Two prospective customers were testing 14A chips in January, with supplier decisions expected between the second half of 2026 and the first half of 2027.¹

Nothing confirms AMD intends to manufacture chips at Intel.¹ Tan also did not name the customers wanting to expand with Intel’s manufacturing services, or say how big their orders might be.¹

Tan did tell a story meant to reassure foundry buyers: a customer waited six to eight months for him to become CEO, then listed 15 areas where Intel had fallen short. Intel says it tackled all of them, and the customer agreed to expand the relationship.¹ The customer was not named, and the account does not involve AMD.¹

This rests on a single outlet’s report, so treat the AMD angle as talk.

Our read: Chip makers swapping notes on standards is old news; a shared project would be new. Watch the 14A customer decisions over the next year, because that is where a real commitment would show up first.

On the bench: nothing changes for your next CPU purchase today. If a deal ever lands, expect it in custom chips or manufacturing, not in a box you can buy soon.

Footnotes

1. TechRadar, “Intel and AMD could be about to work together on a mystery project — CEO Lip-Bu Tan hints at future co-operation, which could be anything from software to CPU to foundry work”. Retrieved November 1, 2026. ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹ ↩¹⁰