Bloomberg did an interview with my favorite semiconductor analyst Stacy Rasgon on “How the Number One U.S. Semiconductor Company Stumbled” that I found interesting. Coupled with the Q&A Bob Swan did at the Credit Suisse Annual Technology Conference I thought it would be good content for a viral blog.
No Intel and Samsung are not passing TSMC
Seeking Alpha just published an article about Intel and Samsung passing TSMC for process leadership. The Intel part seems to be a theme with them, they have talked in the past about how Intel does bigger density improvements with each generation than the foundries but forget that the foundries are doing 5 nodes in the time it takes… Read More
Intel’s Secret Key to Decrypt Microcode Patches is Exposed
A group of security vulnerability researchers, after many months of work, were able to figure out the update process and secret key used to decrypt Intel microcode updates for the Goldmont architecture product lines.
This is an important finding as it peels back yet another layer of the onion that protects the core CPU from malicious
AMD and Intel Update with Xilinx
The AMD acquisition of Xilinx is certainly big news but as an insider looking at the media coverage I think there are a few more points to consider. While most of the coverage has been positive there will always be negatives and we can look at that as well.
Intel acquired Altera in 2015 for $16.7B at a 50% premium which was a major disruption… Read More
Are TSMC and Intel Partnering in Arizona?
After months of back and forth TSMC finally announced plans to build a fab in Arizona. The announcement was not made in the press or on the most recent investor call but on LinkedIn. A sign of the times I guess but since they need to hire a bunch of semiconductor people it was more than appropriate.
“We’re delighted to catch up with you … Read More
Intel TSMC Update!
Based on the Intel investor call yesterday here are some interesting comments Bob Swan made related to Intel outsourcing manufacturing and 7nm progress. Let’s start with the prepared statement:
Bob Swan: “Over the last couple of years, we have been focused on three critical priorities; improving our execution to strengthen … Read More
Is Intel Losing its Memory?
- It’s reported that Intel is selling its NAND ops to SK Hynix
- Would likely get Intel out of a tough & distracting market
- Is Intel abandoning China? Like Intel’s sale of XPoint to Micron
Getting out of NAND makes sense
The memory market is very tough, competitive and worst of all, very cyclical. Unless you have an iron… Read More
Three Things You Have Wrong About Intel!
First let me tell you that I have nothing but respect for Intel. I grew up with them in Silicon Valley and have experienced firsthand their brilliance and the many contributions they have made to the semiconductor industry. In fact, I can easily say the semiconductor ecosystem would not be what it is today without Intel.
But no company… Read More
Inside a Counterfeit 8086 Processor
Intel introduced the 8086 processor in 1978, leading to the x86 architecture in use today. I’m currently reverse-engineering the circuitry of the 8086 so I’ve been purchasing vintage 8086 chips off eBay. One chip I received is shown below. From the outside, it looks like a typical Intel 8086.
A “Super” Technology Mid-life Kicker for Intel
Summary
At the recent Intel Architecture Day 2020 symposium, a number of technology enhancements to the Intel 10nm process node were introduced. The cumulative effect of these enhancements would provide designs with a performance boost (at iso-power) approaching 20% – a significant intra-node enhancement, to be sure. The… Read More

