Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger acknowledged that Apple Silicon was superior, but said he wanted to bring back the Mac business.
Intel and Apple began to separate from each other when Apple announced in June 2020 that it would switch its Mac processors from Intel chips to Apple Silicon with its own design over two years. In fact, in November of the same year, the 13-inch MacBook Pro or MacBook Air and Mac mini adopted the M1 chip, followed by the 24-inch iMac in 2021.
Intel initially advertised that there is a limited number of Macs compared to its own chip-based PCs and used actors who appeared in previous Apple CMs to appeal to M1 Mac’s shortcomings. However, it had the opposite effect, drawing criticism that the benchmark results used in the advertisement were manipulated.
However, according to reports, CEO Gelsinger said in an interview a while ago that Apple decided that it could make a better chip than its own, and that they did a pretty good job. In other words, it suggests that they have reluctantly acknowledged the superiority of Apple Silicon by breaking away from the stance of booing Macs so far.
He also said that his job is to make chips that outperform them, and he expects Intel to withdraw over time, as well as parts of Apple’s business, as well as many other businesses. Some may be Intel processors for the Mac, which will soon disappear, and many other businesses may point to the iPhone chip business.
Gelsinger said it would fight hard for its products to outperform Apple, whether its ecosystem is more open and vibrant than them, and to create more compelling reasons for developers and users to come to Intel-based products.
But CEO Gelsinger also said that an easier option than convincing Apple to abandon its own chip design is to convince Apple to use Intel’s manufacturing facilities. In other words, they seem to be subtly acknowledging that Intel chip-based Macs can’t be done again. Gelsinger noted that Amazon, Qualcomm and the Pentagon already had contracts to outsource some of Intel’s chip manufacturing, saying it would be great if Apple could be included in this.
But in July, while acknowledging that Intel was lagging behind in microfabrication, it said that it would regain the lead by 2025. Soon after, it was reported that Taiwanese TSMC had approved the 2nm manufacturing process plan by the government. In addition, new Apple silicones, the M1 Pro and M1 Max, are announced, revealing potential far beyond the M1. Related information can be found here.