“It is no secret that the existing chip manufacturers are essentially maxed out on their production capacity for the next couple of years when it comes to AI,” Park said. “Any ability that Intel has to further support AI workloads would be welcomed by the market at large. This is especially important because AI is often developed in the cloud due to the unpredictability of the workload, and AWS is potentially a blank check in terms of acquiring AI chips.”
Neil Shah, partner & co-founder at Counterpoint Research, noted that the deal marks a significant milestone for Intel, potentially allowing it to package Amazon’s next-generation Trainium chip — possibly Trainium 3 — which could exceed 1000 watts, putting it on par with Nvidia’s Blackwell architecture.
“However, it remains to be seen how significant this deal is in terms of volume and the mix of front-end (wafer fab) and back-end (packaging) processes,” Shah added. “Additionally, the yield rate of the chips, compared to TSMC, will be a major concern in determining the profitability of the deal for both parties.”
