Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSM, Financials) proposed a joint venture with Nvidia (NVDA, Financials), Advanced Micro Devices (AMD, Financials), and Broadcom (AVGO, Financials) to operate Intel's (INTC, Financials) semiconductor foundries, according to industry sources, Reuters said. Qualcomm (QCOM, Financials) has also received the proposal.

The talks are still in their early stages, hence TSMC would only own a 50% share in the business. Originally supported by the Trump administration, the plan followed a request from the U.S. government to enlist TSMC in Intel's recovery activities. Any arrangement would need for U.S. regulatory clearance given worries about foreign control of Intel's production operations.Intel's foundry segment has battled to match TSMC and Samsung. Intel evaluated its foundry assets at $108 billion and recorded a $18.8 billion financial loss in 2024its first since 1986. Notwithstanding many takeover requests, the corporation has opposed requests to split its design division from its foundry activities.

Previously pledging a $100 billion investment in U.S. semiconductor production with five new manufacturing facilities, TSMC Though some executives still object, certain Intel board members have shown support for the joint venture.Still a major factor are operational and technical issues. Different production techniques, chemicals, and tooling configurations used by Intel and TSMC might impede their working together. Under consideration by Nvidia, Broadcom, and AMD as they evaluate possible production with Intel, Intel says their 18A manufacturing process is better than TSMC's 2-nanometer technology.Given U.S.-China trade tensions and Taiwan's important involvement in chip production, a cooperation between Intel and TSMC might have major effects on the worldwide semiconductor supply chain.