- New technical processes will first be introduced in the production of server products.
- The 2021 discrete GPU will be unique in many ways: EUV lithography, multi-chip spatial arrangement, and Intel's first 7nm mass-production experience.
- Intel does not lose hope to master the 5nm technology.
- After the development of 7nm technology, the income of investors and the company itself should increase.
At an Intel investor event, it was said that the first 7nm product will be a GPU for server applications, which will be released in 2021. Before that, a 2020nm GPU will be released in 10, the scope of which the company does not specify. It cannot be ruled out that it will be a gaming one, since the corporation has been reporting the presence of such plans for more than a month in a row at every opportunity.
Starting the development of a new technical process with a product that is not the most familiar to you is a rather bold step, and the corresponding question puzzled industry analysts who attended the Intel event. To answer this question at the end of the Q&A session, Venkata Renduchintala, who oversees the company's engineering direction, had to answer this question.
He explained that GPUs are the least risky product in the transition to the new lithography technology, since their more uniform die structure with many redundant blocks allows you to eliminate defective areas without compromising the functioning of the entire processor. In other words, the scrap rate for GPUs will be lower, which will directly benefit the company's costs.
The server segment will become a testing ground for new technical processes
The comments of Navin Shenoy, who is responsible for the development of Intel's server business, on the same topic were no less interesting. He admitted that recently Intel decided to release server products first of all when mastering new lithographic standards. This will happen with the first 7nm GPU, which will be released in 2021. It will find application in computing accelerators for servers.
The next 7nm product in line, according to Shenoy, is a kind of central processing unit for the server segment. An Intel representative did not name him, but it can be assumed that we are talking about processors of the Sapphire Rapids family, which will be released in 2021.
However, an important remark should be made to this assumption. When Intel CEO Robert Swan spoke about the transition to the 7nm process technology, he emphasized that the mass production of products using 7nm technology will be deployed only in 2022. In this case, the successor to Sapphire Rapids, previously mentioned under the name Granite Rapids, can already claim the role of the corresponding server processor. At least, that was the idea of ββIntel's plans exactly a year ago.
Why Intel seeks to first transfer server products to new technical processes is easy to understand. It is in this segment that the company is trying to actively increase its revenue and market coverage, and the new technical process allows reducing costs in the medium term. Moreover, Intel has historically had the largest chips in the server segment, and even after the transition to a multi-chip layout and Foveros, the relative state of affairs will not change.
In the case of a GPU on which the 7nm process technology will be tested, it is also necessary to take into account the features of its layout. As representatives of the company have already noted, it will consist of dissimilar crystals combined in a Foveros spatial package. Individual crystals are easier to exclude if defects are found on them. Most likely, in the desktop segment, the first 10-nm Intel graphics processor will be deprived of such layout advantages, since so far they have a negative impact on the final cost of the product. In the server segment, the margin is higher, and ideas for improving the layout can be implemented.
Hope for financial well-being Intel links to post-7nm era
Robert Swan emphasized that in the development of 7nm technology, the company will try not to repeat the mistakes made during the preparation for the transition to the 10nm process technology. Expenses for the development of 7-nm technology will have to be carried out in the face of tightening financial discipline and a large-scale restructuring of the company, the largest in its history. However, when mass production of 7nm products is established, Intel expects to improve the financial performance of operations. After 2022, when 7nm products start shipping in large quantities, the company expects to improve its per-share earnings per share. Intel's 7nm product lineup promises to be the fastest in the company's history, executives tell investors.
When Venkata Renduchintal was asked if he was embarrassed by Intel's lagging behind closest competitor TSMC, which will already master 2021nm technology in 5, a representative of the first company calmly stated that it was Intel's ability to release planned products on time, and not the race for advanced technical processes that mattered. by her own.
In the speech of the head of Intel, there was a mention of intentions to master the 5-nm process technology, albeit without reference to a specific calendar period. Apparently, before 2023-2024 we will not see 5-nm serial products from Intel. The history of the development of 10-nm technology has shown that it is dangerous to think for such a long time.
Source: 3dnews.ru