At its Vision 2025 conference, Intel announced today that it has entered risk production of its 18A process node, a crucial production milestone signifying that the node is now in the early stages of low-volume test manufacturing runs.
Intel's Kevin O'Buckley, the Senior Vice President of Foundry Services, made the announcement as Intel nears the full completion of its "five nodes in four years" (5N4Y) plan, which was originally set in motion by ex-CEO Pat Gelsinger as part of the company's quest to retake the semiconductor crown from rival TSMC. The conference also marks the first time that new CEO Lip-Bu Tan has taken to the stage as the new leader of Intel.
Intel originally announced its four-year plan in June 2021, and despite canceling high volume manufacturing of the 20A node as a cost-cutting measure, Intel is on the cusp of reaching the finish line with its 18A node. Notably, Intel's 5N4Y plan hinged on the process nodes being available for production rather than actively being in the final high volume manufacturing (HVM) stage.
