Jim Keller reportedly left Intel Foundry as a possible future manufacturing option for Tenstorrent, but did not announce a deal or endorse Intel’s technology. In HotHardware’s October 3, 2025 account of an interview with Nikkei Asia, Keller said Intel had substantial work to do to deliver a solid technology roadmap.
What Keller reportedly said about Intel Foundry
HotHardware reported that Tenstorrent was discussing 2nm fabrication with TSMC, Samsung, and Japan’s Rapidus, while Intel could be an option in the future. The article relayed Keller’s assessment from a Nikkei Asia interview as: “they still have a lot of work to do … to deliver a really solid technology roadmap.” The original Nikkei Asia interview was not independently verified here, so the quote and account should be understood as HotHardware’s reporting: HotHardware, October 3, 2025.
That is cautious openness, not a customer announcement. HotHardware’s account does not say Tenstorrent selected Intel, placed an order, or entered a manufacturing agreement with Intel Foundry.
What Intel’s status says—and does not say—about readiness
Intel’s own disclosures show active process development and customer engagement, but they do not establish that Intel Foundry is already a proven, high-volume option for outside customers.
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Intel 18A is in a product, while later nodes remain under evaluation
Intel’s 2025 Form 10-K says Intel 18A is used in the first Intel Core Ultra Series 3 processor. It also says Intel was evaluating Intel 14A for future Intel products and retained the option to use an external foundry for some future products requiring performance beyond Intel 18A and 18A-P. The filing describes Intel’s own product and sourcing decisions; it does not establish external customer production on those nodes: Intel’s 2025 Form 10-K.
Intel 18A-P entered risk production
In June 2026, Intel said 18A-P had entered risk production. Intel’s announcement described the milestone as progress while acknowledging work remained: “This is a journey, and while we have more work ahead, we appreciate the opportunity to share the progress we are making with Intel 18A-P and our longer-range R&D.” That is Intel’s characterization, not an independent assessment of the process or proof of high-volume production for outside customers: Intel’s June 2026 announcement.
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Customer engagement is not the same as a production commitment
Intel’s first-quarter 2026 prepared remarks described continued external engagement on 18A-P and 14A, and forecast that early design commitments would begin emerging in the second half of 2026. That was a company forecast, not confirmation that commitments later occurred: Intel’s first-quarter 2026 prepared remarks.
Earlier, in April 2025, Intel said it had engaged lead customers on 14A and announced a Chiplet Alliance for advanced-technology infrastructure. Those statements indicate customer and ecosystem activity; they do not identify a customer’s committed production volume or establish a production order: Intel’s April 2025 announcement.
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- Compatible with Intel 600-series (with potential BIOS update) or 700-series chipset-based motherboards
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Is Intel Foundry ready for outside customers?
The evidence supports a qualified answer: Intel is developing its processes, engaging potential customers, and advancing products on its roadmap, but the cited announcements do not prove that every target is production-ready or that external customers have made production commitments. “Risk production” and “customer engagement” describe progress stages; neither alone demonstrates high-volume manufacturing for a customer’s chip.
Keller’s reported comments should therefore be read as openness to considering Intel later, paired with a concern about roadmap solidity—not as confidence that Intel is ready to manufacture Tenstorrent’s chips now. His reported mention of TSMC, Samsung, and Rapidus supplies no basis for ranking those foundries against Intel.
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- 24 cores (8 P-cores plus 16 E-cores) and 32 threads. Integrated Intel UHD Graphics 770 included
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- Compatible with Intel 600-series (with potential BIOS update) or 700-series chipset-based motherboards
- DDR4 and DDR5 platform support cuts your load times and gives you the space to run the most demanding games
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- Game Without Compromise. Play harder and work smarter with Intel Core 14th Gen processors
- 20 cores (8 P-cores plus 12 E-cores) and 28 threads. Discrete graphics required
- Up to 5.6 GHz with Turbo Boost Max Technology 3.0 gives you smooth game play, high frame rates, and rapid responsiveness
- Compatible with Intel 600-series (with potential BIOS update) or 700-series chipset-based motherboards
- DDR4 and DDR5 platform support cuts your load times and gives you the space to run the most demanding games
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