Apple Reaches Preliminary Deal With Intel to Manufacture Chips [Report]

Apple and Intel have reached a preliminary agreement for the U.S. chipmaker to manufacture some of the chips used in Apple devices, according to a new report from The Wall Street Journal.



The two companies have been in talks for more than a year and reportedly reached the preliminary agreement in recent months. It's still unclear which Apple products could eventually use Intel-manufactured chips, but the deal would give Apple another major fabrication partner beyond Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company.


Apple is under pressure to secure additional chip suppliers as demand for advanced semiconductors continues to surge across the industry. Nvidia recently overtook Apple as TSMC's largest customer, intensifying competition for access to the foundry's most advanced manufacturing capacity. The report notes that TSMC's manufacturing capabilities still far exceed those of Samsung and Intel, despite growing efforts by both companies to compete for advanced chip orders.

Those supply constraints have already affected Apple's hardware availability. During recent earnings calls, CEO Tim Cook blamed limited access to advanced chip production for Apple's inability to fully meet iPhone demand. He also warned that shortages affecting products like the Mac mini and Mac Studio could persist for months. Following the earnings report, Apple also removed its $599 entry-level Mac mini configuration, effectively increasing the lineup's starting price to $799.

The Trump administration reportedly played a key role in bringing Apple and Intel together. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick spent the past year meeting with major technology executives, including Cook, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, and SpaceX chief Elon Musk, encouraging them to partner with Intel's foundry division. President Trump also personally advocated for Intel during a meeting with Cook at the White House.

The government's involvement follows a deal reached last summer that converted nearly $9 billion in federal grants into a 10 percent equity stake in Intel for the U.S. government. President Trump later claimed the investment helped attract major partners to Intel's manufacturing business.


Intel has been restructuring aggressively since CEO Lip-Bu Tan took over last spring following the ouster of Pat Gelsinger. Tan has reshaped the company's leadership team, hired new executives across key computing divisions, and established a custom silicon business. He also recruited former TSMC executive Wei-Jen Lo, a move that prompted a lawsuit from the Taiwanese chipmaker.

Operationally, Intel has focused heavily on advancing its 14A manufacturing process, a node analysts previously identified as a potential fit for future Apple chip production.

The Apple agreement adds Apple to Intel's growing list of major foundry partners, which already includes Nvidia and Elon Musk's companies. Nvidia invested $5 billion in Intel last September to manufacture custom data center CPUs, while Musk recently announced plans for a large Terafab facility in Texas to build chips for Tesla, SpaceX, and xAI.

The deal also marks a renewed partnership between Apple and Intel under very different circumstances. Apple relied on Intel-designed processors for Mac computers from 2006 until the transition to Apple silicon began in 2020. Under the new arrangement, Intel would serve strictly as a manufacturing partner for Apple's in-house chip designs.

The report also aligns with earlier reports that Apple was exploring domestic manufacturing options with both Intel and Samsung. In a February interview, Apple's global head of procurement, David Tom, acknowledged that the company remains in regular contact with Intel regarding supply chain opportunities.