Hacker News new | ask | show | jobs
by pointyfence 1917 days ago
I was thinking more along the lines of selecting a company that plays better with the rest of the industry and has a better operational history if you wanted to bring back more of a general semiconductor manufacturing ecosystem back to the US. Focus more on building out capabilities for the rest of the industries that don't need bleeding edge node development while Intel figures out its bleeding edge.

Intel strikes me as historically one of the more ethically challenged companies that heavily relied on monopolistic power. And then when it got into trouble and that monopoly's cracks were widening at a good pace, it started waving the flag after spending $20B+ on stock buybacks.
2 comments
trynumber9 1917 days ago
Intel has the need for leading edge logic processes and the money to try it. No other US company does. Micron is focused on memory and will not go into logic processes.

There are a few contract fabs in the US but none of them are anywhere near the volume Intel will have to offer as 14nm lines become available for other customers.

Anyway, I don't understand your proposal. Intel is doing what it can. Other US semiconductor companies are doing what they can. Unless you want the government to pressure Intel to sell some of their 14nm fabs to companies who have an interest in contract manufacturing I suspect this is just the way things will go.

link
trhway 1917 days ago
>Focus more on building out capabilities for the rest of the industries that don't need bleeding edge node development

i think that would be a huge strategic error. Most of those "the rest of the industries" are in turn going to get access to and reap the benefits of the bleeding edge as soon as they can, so building out non-bleeding edge specifically for them is a losing game.

The announcement itself seems to be a kitchen sink. They are going to do everything in a new and cool way! Kind of obvious that Pat can't break the death grip of the manufacturing people - after all it is that vertical integration that has brought all those record revenues in the recent years. Of course it has also caused Intel to fall that far behind.

link