Intel's chipmaking ambitions aren't turning out too well, as according to a new report, the company now plans to lay off thousands of employees at its Oregon facility.
Intel Doesn't Look Much Optimistic Towards the Chip Business, Despite Being the Biggest Recipient of the CHIPS Act
America's native chip company has difficulty finding ground in the industry, especially in the past few quarters, since Team Blue's finances are simply going down the drain. Despite massive ambitions, the foundry division has failed to deliver on expectations, and now, the new CEO, Lip-Bu Tan, looks to take aggressive decisions to put the company back on track. A WARN notice has revealed that Intel plans to fire more than 2,500 employees at its Oregon facility, as part of the company's wider restructuring plan. This marks five times the higher figure to what was reported last week, showing that Intel isn't stopping with its turnaround plans.
Intel's Oregon site currently claims to have over 23,000 employees and is a $64.84 billion investment, which shows that targeting layoffs here depicts that Intel seems desperate for its position. More importantly, the facility would have marked the production of Intel's upcoming 18A and 14A nodes, and while operations aren't reported to be affected for now, the layoffs will certainly impact Intel's foundry policy. And considering that Team Blue has revealed that they aren't expecting external volume with 18A, it's safe to say the IFS needs a lot more time to catch up to competitors.
The demand for chips in the US has been massive in recent times, especially after President Trump's "Made in USA" initiative, which has brought in the likes of TSMC to produce cutting-edge nodes in the US. Despite being in America for decades, Intel has apparently failed to cater to the domestic chipmaking ambitions, even after being one of the biggest beneficiaries of the CHIPS Act, which indicates that the company has serious foundational issues, especially within the foundry division.
While the layoffs at Oregon are a step towards reducing operating losses, they also show that Intel isn't too optimistic about its semiconductor business for now. Considering that TSMC has managed to capitalize on the demand for nodes in America, Intel is also being driven away from a key market. Like Intel's CEO said, the firm isn't even one of the top ten semiconductor firms globally, and getting back to its original fame would require much more than just finances.
About the author: Muhammad Zuhair is a hardware and technology reporter for Wccftech, specializing in the semiconductor industry and the complex interplay between technology, manufacturing, and geopolitics. His coverage focuses on the corporate strategies and technological roadmaps of industry giants like TSMC, NVIDIA, Samsung, and Intel. Zuhair's expertise lies in deconstructing complex topics such as fabrication nodes (e.g., 2nm process), the economic impact of policies like the CHIPS Act, and the strategic development of AI infrastructure from NVIDIA, AMD and Intel.
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