UMC and Intel Team Up to Target Advanced Chipmaking Processes

United Microelectronics Corporation has long focused on mature and specialty processes, while Intel is aggressively expanding its foundry business. If their partnership advances to 3-nanometer production, it could combine UMC’s foundry operating experience with Intel’s advanced process technology and U.S. capacity, giving the companies a foothold in an advanced-process market currently dominated by TSMC.

The latest market reports suggest the UMC-Intel partnership could expand from the previously disclosed 12-nanometer process to 3 nanometers, with the companies complementing each other in capital and technology. Industry sources said 12-nanometer wafer starts are expected in 2027, with the partners aiming for commercial mass production at Intel’s Arizona fab by the end of 2027. The two companies have yet to confirm the scope of the partnership or the investment amount.