The last time I covered $Intel(INTC)$ was back in 28 Apr 2026, after it has released its Q1 2026 earnings report card. click here ! to re-read my post.
In the April post, its stock price then was a respectable $82.57 /share.
Since then, it has further peaked at $129.44 on 11 May 2026 and has begun to pull back a bit, thereafter.
Honestly, I prefer it to be like this where the upwards trajectory seems more plausible and not to mention sustainable.
Unfortunately, it did not stop, there and then.
Fri, 05 Jun 2026 Crash.
Since Fri, 05 Jun 2026, a sharp downturn has gripped US stock market and extended through following week, an aggressive macro-driven regime shift.
Many analysts have pointed to the primary catalyst being US’s Bureau of Labour Statistics (BLS)'s May 2026 Non-farm payroll (NFP) report, that showed US economy added 172,000 jobs, massively outperforming consensus expectations of 85,000.
‘Traditionally’, a strong labour market is fundamentally a sign of economic health, by and large, market rally ensues.
However, this time round Wall Street processed this "good” news as a severe threat, igniting widespread panic that sticky, structural inflation is firmly back on the table.
It is important to recognize that the over the weekend bloodbath is not uniform; it centered heavily on the information technology (IT) sector, specifically targeting Semiconductors and Storage-related businesses.
These high-beta growth stocks, enjoyed massive valuation premiums fueled by the artificial intelligence (AI) boom, are highly sensitive to shifting cost-of-capital assumptions.
Consequently, as systemic liquidity pulled back, the entire semiconductor complex suffered a blanket, structural correction. (see below)
As of 09 Jun 2026 end day
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The $Philadelphia Semiconductor Index(SOX)$ has collectively fallen by -9.40% over the past 5 days.
INTC's Correction - De-link.
Getting caught up in this broader macro storm is INTC, with its stock price falling entirely in lockstep with prevailing negative market sentiments, a downward trajectory that is systemic rather than a failure of INTC’s underlying technology roadmap.
As investors broadly reduced exposure and rotated out of semiconductor manufacturers, equipment providers, and hardware architecture, INTC was swept up in the crosscurrents of this industry-wide de-risking phase, reflecting overall sector multiple compression.
The Lip-Bu Tan Era Turnaround.
To claim why current market pullback masks INTC's real internal transformation, there is a need to look at the structural pivot occurring under CEO Lip-Bu Tan, when he assumed the role on 18 Mar 2025.
As of 09 Jun 2026, the man has been at the job for 1-year, 2-months and 23-days, but who’s counting (like real !)
After years of operational drift under previous leadership, Tan has successfully reimagined INTC's dual identity as an Integrated Device Manufacturer (IDM 2.0) since taking the reins of this grand dame.
Previous CEOs and their teams allowed manufacturing execution to slip and yields to falter, leading to persistent speculation that Intel Foundry might need to be spun off or sold entirely to stem financial losses.
In contrast, Tan has stabilized the ship, leaning heavily into (1) open ecosystems, (2) optimizing capital expenditure, and (3) enforcing rigid engineering milestones.
The discipline has enabled the Foundry to move from a vulnerability to a core pillar of structural value.
This cannot be more evident than recent two critical & highly strategic milestones - demonstrating how INTC has successfully constructed an independent, world-class foundry ecosystem - capable of attracting premium external clients.
Partnership Expansion.
As an Electronic Design Automation (EDA) giant, Cadence Design Systems has long provided (a) core chip-design software, (b) simulation tools, and (c) intellectual property (IP) blocks to Intel - for its internal, proprietary processors.
Under the Integrated Device Manufacturer (IDM 2.0) strategy, Cadence’s role has expanded from a standard supplier-customer dynamic into a deeply integrated, multi-year foundry-ecosystem partnership.
This is a foundational win for INTC Foundry’s long-term commercial viability. (see below)
Partnership details.
In the expanded partnership, INTC & Cadence are working together to optimize tools specifically for Intel Foundry’s external customers.
This means, they are co-developing production-ready Process Design Kits (PDKs) so that third-party, fabless design firms can easily port their architectures onto INTC's advanced 14A node - an essential prerequisite for any modern foundry business.
Deep Design Technology Co-Optimization (DTCO)
Engineers from both companies will be working at R&D-to-R&D level - embedding Cadence's latest agentic AI-driven design flows directly into INTC's physical manufacturing architectures.
This is to ensure that the software and the silicon fabrication process are built in lockstep.
Doing so will elevate Intel Foundry to the same tier of strategic collaboration that Cadence maintains with established giants like $Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing(TSM)$ and Samsung Foundry.
For fabless semiconductor firms to shift their business away from entrenched, undisputed competitors like TSM, they must have absolute certainty that their existing design tools align seamlessly with INTC's silicon architectures, no ?
This latest tie-up removes friction, ensuring that as INTC ramps up advanced nodes, the industry’s premier chip designers can readily manufacture their architectures on INTC silicon.
Google TPU Advanced Packaging Win
On 09 Jun 2026, it was reported that $Alphabet(GOOG)$ has placed an order with INTC, to manufacture more than 3 million of its tensor processing units (TPUs) in 2028. (see below)
On the news breakout, INTC’s stock price rose as high as $113 /share but has since back to $107.92 (as of 09 Jun 2026 end day trading).
US #1 bank - $JPMorgan Chase(JPM)$ downplayed INTC's involvement in GOOG's custom AI TPU- chip pipeline as being “only responsible for packaging”, while the logic chips are still produced by TSM.
They also characterized US market's hyper-extended expectations as a "storm in a teacup".
However, I beg to differ because the reality of this deal is deeply positive and future looking for INTC.
So far, there is no confirmation (at all) about INTC’s level of involvement. To proceed further, let’s assume JPM’s analysis is accurate.
That is:
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TSM handles the primary wafer fabrication.
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INTC secures the advanced packaging contract utilizing its proprietary Embedded Multi-die Interconnect Bridge (EMIB-T) packaging technology.
The Structural Takeaway.
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In advanced semiconductor arena, packaging is no longer a secondary afterthought.
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It is a critical, highly sophisticated performance bottleneck.
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With TSM’s advanced packaging capacities (CoWoS) constrained by global demand, INTC has stepped in as the vital alternative.
INTC the Real Deal.
The choice to use INTC's packaging makes perfect sense.
This is because INTC’s EMIB technology uses a tiny, embedded silicon bridge to connect multiple chips efficiently, avoiding the cost and size of a full-size middle layer.
This offers a vital alternative to TSM's heavily supply-constrained CoWoS technology, especially with Intel’s EMIB manufacturing success rate reportedly reaching 90%.
Furthermore, GOOG favours EMIB for its superior high-speed memory integration.
INTC’s advanced EMIB-T variant enables a massive 120 by 120 mm layout that packs together 12 high-speed memory stacks and 4 high-density processing units, providing the exact massive bandwidth GOOG's TPU designs require.
GOOG is expected to use this for its upcoming TPU v8e in H2 2027, potentially opening the door for many future orders.
Strategically, GOOG is securing its supply chain by avoiding total reliance on a single manufacturer for its vital AI infrastructure.
Finally, by skipping the entire middle layer required by CoWoS, EMIB structurally lowers per-unit costs for GOOG's high-volume orders.
Spectacular Comeback - Baby Steps.
Every iconic technology franchise must build its momentum from a concrete starting point.
For an industrial giant recovering from legacy operational drag, securing a foothold in GOOG's custom TPU ecosystem via advanced packaging is a magnificent proof of concept.
It proves to hyperscale cloud providers and AI developers that INTC’s packaging ecosystem is robust enough to handle the thermal, electrical, and density requirements of next-generation AI silicon.
Capturing the packaging business:
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Keeps INTC’s manufacturing lines utilized, instead of sitting idle.
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Helps refine internal execution processes.
Importantly, it places INTC inside the supply chains of big tech's most valuable silicon architectures.
As Intel Foundry continues to build credibility, these initial packaging agreements lay the operational runway for full-scale wafer fabrication wins on the 18A & 14A nodes in the years ahead.
The current negative market sentiments are macro-driven noise; underneath the surface, the chip grand dame is executing a highly deliberate, structurally sound comeback.
The recent partnerships validate INTC's manufacturing roadmap, keep foundry capacity utilized, and position Intel to scale into bigger wins as the AI packaging bottleneck persists.
INTC has spent years under "useless" ex-CEOs.
This moment is a turnaround in motion.
The transient market bloodbath is obscuring the real progress happening beneath the stock price volatility. Agree ?
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Do you think INTC is at its inflection point and about to breakthrough to relevance again ?
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