Intel exec Lip-Bu Tan hints at new products in conversation with Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang at academic event.

Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan congratulated NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang on receiving an honorary Doctor of Science and Technology degree from Carnegie Mellon's 2026 Commencement. Lip-Bu acknowledged Jensen's contributions to accelerated computing and artificial intelligence, noting it was an honor to place the doctoral hood upon him. The occasion also marked a public announcement that Intel and NVIDIA are working together on new and exciting products.

The two semiconductor giants are deepening their partnership across multiple fronts. As part of a broader agreement in which NVIDIA invested $5 billion into Intel, the companies will focus on both data center and consumer platforms. For data centers, they plan to develop a custom Xeon CPU with NVIDIA's NVLink integration. On the consumer side, NVIDIA's RTX IP will be integrated into next-generation SoCs, with the first product arriving in the form of Serpent Lake around 2028-2029.

A significant opportunity lies in Intel's Foundry Business. NVIDIA, which primarily relies on TSMC for its core data center chips, has faced setbacks with CoWoS advanced packaging solutions, and TSMC has been unable to meet the wafer orders demanded by NVIDIA due to production capacity constraints. Intel's Foundry operations, strengthened by recent TeraFab and Apple deals, position the company as a potential manufacturing partner for NVIDIA's additional GPU production needs.

Current reports suggest NVIDIA's next-generation Feynman GPUs will leverage Intel's EMIB advanced packaging solutions. Additionally, Intel's 18A-P or 14A process nodes could potentially be used for entry-to-mid tier client products such as gaming GPUs. While the full scope of manufacturing responsibilities remains to be disclosed, both companies appear positioned to announce significant collaborative projects in the near term.