By Max A. Cherney
(Reuters) – Chip design tools maker Synopsys has signed a deal to bring its technical building blocks to the advanced contract manufacturing Intel offers, the companies said on Monday.
The deal includes intellectual property owned by Synopsys that is used as off-the-shelf components for chip designers aiming to speed the process. The two companies said Synopsys would offer a portfolio of designs that will work with Intel’s advanced manufacturing capabilities Intel 3, and Intel 18A.
Intel and Synopsys said that there was a framework in place for making the intellectual property available on future manufacturing processes.
The companies did not disclose financial terms of the agreement.
Intel’s 18A process is notable because the company plans to introduce a new generation of transistor design that will further boost chip performance.
The partnership between Intel and Synopsys important step for Intel Foundry Services (IFS), its contract manufacturing business, to become a viable alternative to Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co Ltd or Samsung Electronics Co Ltd.
“It’s a brick in the foundation for IFS to gain credibility as a top line, leading edge semiconductor vendor,” Steve Leibson, an analysts at Tirias Research said. “If you don’t have Synopsys in your court, you’re really not going to be taken seriously.”
Intel launched IFS in 2021, and it reported revenue of $232 million in the second quarter of this year.
(Reporting by Max A. Cherney in San Francisco; Editing by Marguerita Choy)
