INTC · 10-K · 2025A · Full report
Intel Foundry Strategy
INTEL CORP · 2026-01-23 · Importance 40 · Surprise 42
Intel reports that in 2025 it ramped Intel 18A into high-volume production and is seeking to establish that node as a primary offering for government and enterprise foundry customers. The company has enhanced operational processes and quality systems and invested in ecosystem enablement, including support for industry-standard EDA tools, process design kits and foundation IP to make its manufacturing network accessible to external customers. Intel is actively marketing future nodes (notably Intel 14A, which was designed from inception as an external offering) to attract third-party foundry customers to improve utilization and amortization of capital-intensive leading-edge investments. These foundry initiatives are positioned under the Intel Foundry segment and are explicitly linked to Intel's strategy to monetize U.S.-based leading-edge capacity and support continued capital investment.
Key facts
- Intel Foundry operating loss was $10.318 billion in 2025 compared to operating loss of $13.291 billion in 2024.
- Intel Foundry revenue was $17.826 billion in 2025, up $509 million from 2024.
- Intel Foundry operating loss percentage was (58)% in 2025 and (77)% in 2024.
- Intel Foundry intersegment revenue was $17.5 billion in 2025, up $361 million from 2024, primarily due to higher back-end services revenue and higher wafer volume from Intel 3, Intel 4 and Intel 18A process nodes.
- Intel uses third-party foundry manufacturing capacity, including at TSMC, for various tiles or entire products where advantageous for cost, performance or schedule and expects to continue doing so for current and future products.
- Intel stated that if it is unable to secure a significant external customer and meet customer milestones for Intel 14A, it may pause or discontinue development and manufacturing of Intel 14A and successor leading-edge nodes and various manufacturing expansion projects.
- Intel is continuing development of Intel 14A, a next-generation node designed from inception as an offering to external customers.
- Intel enhanced operational processes and quality systems in 2025 to meet rigorous standards expected in the foundry industry and invested in ecosystem enablement including support for industry-standard EDA tools, process design kits and a broad portfolio of foundation IP.
Impact estimates
| metric | direction | stage | expected | basis |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| operating_income | positive | realized | +5.5% | Intel Foundry operating loss was $10.318 billion in 2025 compared to operating loss of $13.291 billion in 2024. |
| revenue | positive | realized | +0.9% | Intel Foundry revenue was $17.826 billion in 2025, up $509 million from 2024. |
| revenue | positive | realized | +0.7% | Intel Foundry intersegment revenue was $17.5 billion in 2025, up $361 million from 2024, primarily due to higher back-end services revenue… |
| revenue | positive | realized | +0.3% | Intel Foundry external revenue was $307 million in 2025, up $148 million from 2024. |
| revenue | negative | contingent | — | Intel stated that if it is unable to secure a significant external customer and meet customer milestones for Intel 14A, it may pause or… |
| cash | positive | contingent | — | Intel stated that if it is unable to secure a significant external customer and meet customer milestones for Intel 14A, it may pause or… |
| cash | negative | committed | — | Intel is continuing development of Intel 14A, a next-generation node designed from inception as an offering to external customers. |
| revenue | positive | probable | — | Intel enhanced operational processes and quality systems in 2025 to meet rigorous standards expected in the foundry industry and invested… |
| revenue | negative | contingent | — | Intel reported that nearly all of its Intel Foundry business currently supports internal manufacturing for Intel Products, with limited… |