Intel and Apple Reportedly Reach Preliminary Chip Manufacturing Deal

Intel and Apple Reportedly Reach Preliminary Chip Manufacturing Deal Intel’s long-declining manufacturing clout and Apple’s reliance on a single Asian chip supplier are converging into a potentially transformative – and politically charged – comeback deal for US chipmaking.

Early talks and Apple’s post-Intel era

After Apple completed its shift from Intel CPUs to in‑house Apple Silicon for Macs earlier in the 2020s, the companies appeared to be on diverging paths. But by 2025, Intel’s new leadership and US government backing set the stage for renewed collaboration. Intel, now partially government-owned after Washington took a roughly 10% equity stake in 2025, began actively courting major tech customers for its contract foundry business.

At the same time, Apple started exploring ways to reduce its heavy reliance on Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC), holding “exploratory discussions” with Intel and Samsung about producing its main processor chips inside the US.

Government pressure and corporate outreach

Over the past year, US officials quietly pushed to match Apple’s diversification goals with Intel’s need for large, advanced-node customers. The federal government converted a US$9 billion grant into equity in Intel, making it the company’s largest shareholder and signaling a broader industrial policy to “help[] Intel” and “drum up business” for the firm.

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick met repeatedly with Apple CEO Tim Cook and also reached out to SpaceX CEO Elon Musk and NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang to encourage partnerships with Intel, according to accounts of the talks. Musk himself publicly lauded Intel’s Oregon fabrication plant, saying it was “an honor to be shown the awesome @Intel fab in Oregon” and that he looked forward to “a great partnership” with SpaceX and Tesla.

The preliminary pact and what comes next

By May 2026, these efforts culminated in a preliminary agreement for Intel to manufacture processors for Apple devices, reuniting the firms years after Macs moved away from Intel chips. The pact is described as a “landmark foundry” deal that could give Intel a steady, high-volume customer and force it to stay at the cutting edge to meet Apple’s stringent efficiency and performance targets.

Reports indicate it is still unclear which Apple products will first use Intel-made chips, though supply-chain analysts expect Intel could begin shipping Apple’s lowest-end M-series processors as early as 2027. For Apple, the deal promises a more resilient, multi-foundry supply chain; for Intel, it is a critical test of its ambition to rejoin TSMC at the front of the global semiconductor pack.

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