Last updated on March 9, 2021
While AMD now uses a 7 nm manufacturing process in the desktop area, Intel still hangs around at 14 nm. To make up for the backlog, the rumor mill speculated whether Intel would completely overturn its plan. Now the chip manufacturer has spoken up and explains why you want to stick to the concept.
Intel sticks to its plan: 10 nm chips are not skipped
For more than 4 years now, Intel has been adhering to the 14 nm manufacturing process in the desktop area. No matter whether Broadwell, Skylake, Kaby Lake or Coffee Lake chips – all processors with the above-mentioned micro-architectures rely on the 14 nm production. Meanwhile, AMD has already reached 7 nm with its Ryzen 3000 processors.
If Intel wanted to make up for this massive backlog, the chipmaker would have to throw the current plan overboard and completely skip the production of the 10 nm chips for desktop and server use – at least according to the rumor mill.
But that does not come into the bag for the industry leader. As reported by wccftech , the company currently does not appear to have any ambitions to rely directly on the 7 nm manufacturing process – and for good reason, as Intel’s Chief Engineering Officer Dr. Venkata Renduchintala during a conference said:
There is a lot of good in 10 nm, which we can also transfer to 7 nm. And frankly, with 10 nm manufacturing, we’re at a point where we can solve the basic technological core problems. At the same time, we can guarantee the production of large quantities.
Instead of jumping to 7 nm: Intel is opting for improved versions of 10 nm
Intel will therefore continue to stick to its plan, since 10 nm production can now finally get started and the experience and developed technologies that have been gained benefit the 7 nm manufacturing process.
If everything works as the company expects, Intel should be at 1.4 nm in 10 years . The Intel employee did not want to reveal when end customers could expect the first 10 nm chips in the desktop segment – but one should not expect a market launch before 2021.
What AMD will then rely on for manufacturing processes is still in the stars. It is certain that only AMD’s production partner TSMC has already announced that it plans to start mass-producing the first 5 nm chips by the end of 2020.
