[News] Intel’s 18A to Start Production in 2025, Featuring Processors for AI PCs and Servers

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While surrounded by concerns raised by the USD 1.6 billion net loss in Q2 and the large-scale layoff plan, Intel has finally shared some good news. It announced on August 6^th that its next-gen 18A process has achieved a major milestone, and will start production in 2025.

The semiconductor giant states that the milestone has been achieved less than two quarters after tape-out, and confirms that two of its next-gen products, Panther Lake (AI PC client processor) and Clearwater Forest (server processor), will be fabricated with the node. The first external customer is expected to tape out on Intel 18A in the first half of next year, according to its press release.

The company also gives an advance notice on the progress of the aforementioned two processors. According to Intel, Clearwater Forest will mark the industry’s first mass-produced, high-performance solution combining RibbonFET, PowerVia, and Foveros Direct 3D for higher density and power handling. In addition, Panther Lake DDR memory performance is already running at target frequency.

Earlier in July, Intel released the 18A Process Design Kit (PDK) 1.0, design tools that enable foundry customers to harness the capabilities of RibbonFET gate-all-around transistor architecture and PowerVia backside power delivery in their designs on Intel 18A.

It is worth noting that Intel’s 18A is the company’s second fabrication technology, following 20A, to employ RibbonFET and PowerVia. A report by Tom’s Hardware notes that compared to Intel’s 2nm-class node, 18A offers an optimized RibbonFET design and additional enhancements, resulting in a 10% increase in performance per watt, which makes it especially fitted for data center-class products that require significant power.

The report also notes that Intel 18A is a process that Intel Foundry’s potential customers are very interested in, as some believed it to be more competitive than TSMC’s 3nm and 2nm-class offerings, which are expected to be available between 2024 and 2025.

On the other hand, TSMC, the global foundry leader, said earlier in the earnings call that it’s 2nm (N2) node is progressing well, and will begin mass production in 2025. The company is also on track to launch the N2P and A16 processes in the second half of 2026.

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(Photo credit: Intel)