Ever since former Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger announced in 2021 that Intel was entering the semiconductor foundry business, the focus has been on Intel’s ability to compete on the most advanced semiconductor process nodes. With this came the announcement of five new process nodes in four years and new state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities in Arizona and Ohio. To its credit, Intel delivered on the new process nodes, the most advanced being Intel 18A, which is now in volume production in Intel products at Fab 25 in Hillsboro, Oregon and Fab 52 at Intel’s Ocotillo site in Chandler, Arizona. In Arizona, the sheer size of both Fab 52 and Fab 62, as well as the 700-acre site that holds four other fabs (12, 22, 32, and 42), is impressive. However, Intel is still in the early stages of working with its initial customers for both the current Intel 18A process and the forthcoming Intel 14A process. But the other side of Intel Foundry, responsible for advanced semiconductor packaging, is a completely different story.
One of Intel’s core competencies is semiconductor manufacturing, and it has always led the industry in the research and development of new fabrication processes and packaging technology. Despite its stumbles in bringing new process nodes to market starting around 2013 with the 14nm generation, Intel never missed a beat in advanced packaging. In fact, many companies inquired about using Intel’s advanced packaging capabilities when it first explored becoming a foundry as early as 2010, but Intel’s management refused to consider packaging components for customers unless Intel produced the die for the products. So, when it was announced that Intel Foundry was open for advanced packaging business, the floodgates opened.
The Packaging Equation
Advanced semiconductor packaging is similar to die fabrication in some respects and different in others. Just like die fabrication, advanced packaging requires silicon manufacturing for the interposers used in 2.5D and 3D packaging; investment into new materials and equipment with each generation, even if not at the same scale; and advanced cleanroom facilities for the manufacturing processes. However, packaging also requires some customization in the process and equipment, as requirements can vary greatly by application, product specifications and even the customer.
Like its fabrication footprint, Intel also has advanced packaging facilities worldwide. Intel’s Assembly and Test Technology Development (ATTD) is located in Chandler, Arizona, and volume manufacturing is in Oregon, Malaysia, and New Mexico. The sister facilities located in Penang, Malaysia and Rio Rancho, New Mexico, are the advanced packaging facilities responsible for most of Intel’s EMIB (Embedded Multi-die Interconnect Bridge) used for 2.5D packaging and Foveros 3D die-stacking packaging.
The Rio Rancho facility is unique due to its history and capabilities. The facility first opened in 1980 and eventually became one of the most advanced semiconductor manufacturing facilities in the world by the late-1990s/early-2000s, only to have portions mothballed and put up for sale a little more than a decade later. The announcement of Intel Foundry in 2021 marked a pivotal shift, focusing the facility on advanced semiconductor packaging, and it is the most advanced U.S.-based integrated packaging facility. The entire facility is now being used for manufacturing and test, and the 218-acre facility has room for future expansion. Most recently, Intel began offering silicon photonics manufacturing at Rio Rancho to its external foundry customers. Rio Rancho is also likely to be not just the first Intel site, but the first site in the world for volume manufacturing of glass substrates, which is currently available only on a pilot line in Chandler.
Packaging Is Key To Intel Foundry
Jim McGregor, Founder and Principal Analyst at Tirias Research, who has worked at and visited numerous Intel facilities throughout his career, recently had the opportunity to tour Intel’s Rio Rancho facility. According to Jim, the most interesting part of the tour wasn’t the facilities; it was the mindset. “It didn’t feel like walking into an Intel facility. It felt like walking into a true semiconductor foundry that is willing to do anything for its customers, which includes just specific steps of the packaging process to a complete end-to-end solution.” Jim also noted that “when the staff referenced Intel, it was typically in the context of being just another customer. Although they could not provide details on other customers, it’s very clear that they have several large external customers, and they continue to ramp up in terms of space, equipment and personnel to support their growing customer base.”
According to reports from channel sources, AWS and Cisco are current customers of Intel Foundry’s advanced packaging services, while Apple, Google, Microsoft, Nvidia and Tesla are reportedly engaged in discussions regarding potential collaborations. In addition, Intel Foundry has established strategic partnerships with SK Hynix for HBM memory and Amkor Technology, a leading outsourced semiconductor assembly and test (OSAT) that is expanding its Arizona capacity, presumably to support the new local Intel and TSMC fabs.
According to Intel, Intel Foundry should break even in 2027 and be profitable by 2030. Even though the company does not break out financial figures for fabrication and packaging, Tirias Research believes the Packaging and Test Business Group is already profitable and will be a major contributor to Intel Foundry’s financial strength through 2030. On Intel’s Q4 2025 earnings call, CFO David Zinsner said early customer engagements suggest that many advanced packaging opportunities could be well north of $1 billion. Jim indicated that “the advanced packaging arm of Intel Foundry is where I would expect the fabrication arm, to be in a few years.”
Future Outlook
Advanced packaging has become strategically critical in the AI era because performance scaling increasingly depends on integrating multiple compute, memory, networking and photonics dies into a single package. As reticle limits, power density, yield constraints and HBM integration challenges grow, packaging is becoming as important as transistor scaling itself. Intel’s leadership in advanced packaging indicates that the U.S. can, and will be, competitive in all aspects of semiconductor manufacturing.
More than anything, the Packaging and Test Business Group provides a glimpse into the future of Intel Foundry. Packaging may be the last step in the semiconductor manufacturing process, but it is the first step in Intel Foundry becoming an industry-leading foundry. It also points to the future in terms of both fabrication processes and packaging, which at this point will include silicon photonics, glass substrates and future Intel process nodes, including Intel 14A. Even if Intel won’t admit it’s fully committed to Intel 14A, Tirias Research believes that it is. While it is still unclear if Intel Foundry will remain a part of Intel after it reaches profitability, it is increasingly evident that the business is positioned to become a major force in the global semiconductor industry.
The author and members of the Tirias Research staff do not hold equity positions in any of the companies mentioned. Tirias Research tracks and consults for companies throughout the electronics ecosystem from semiconductors to systems and sensors to the cloud. Tirias Research has consulted for Nvidia, AMD, Intel and companies throughout the semiconductor ecosystem.
