NVIDIA and Intel announced a significant collaboration on September 18 to co-develop advanced chips for data centres and personal computing. As part of the deal, NVIDIA will invest $5 billion in Intel’s common stock at $23.28 per share, subject to regulatory approval.
The partnership aims to integrate NVIDIA’s AI and accelerated computing technologies with Intel’s x86 CPUs.
Intel will design custom x86 CPUs for NVIDIA’s AI infrastructure platforms and produce new x86 system-on-chips (SoCs) combining NVIDIA RTX GPU chiplets with Intel CPUs for PCs.
During a recent briefing by NVIDIA chief Jensen Huang and Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan, Huang said, “All the work that we did gave us a lot of confidence in the future of Intel. And so…I’ve become quite a significant shareholder, because we believe in this, and we have confidence in them to create these amazing products.”
Strategic Investments
Huang also expressed that the deal would bring x86 into NVIDIA’s NVLink ecosystem and enable rack-scale AI supercomputers. He said custom Intel CPUs would make entire racks function like one giant computer and GPU combined, boosting NVIDIA’s supercomputing reach.
For the PC market, Huang said the partnership would target an underserved segment. “There are 150 million laptops sold per year… an entire segment of the market where the CPU and GPU are integrated has been largely unaddressed by NVIDIA today. With Intel, we’re creating an SoC that fuses CPU and RTX GPU into one virtual giant chip.”
Tan called the agreement a game-changing opportunity and said it would combine NVIDIA’s leadership in AI-accelerated computing with Intel’s data centre and PC strengths. He added, “Our motto is simple: make great products and delight the customer. That is what this collaboration is about.”
This collaboration follows recent strategic investments in Intel. In August 2025, Japan’s SoftBank announced a $2 billion investment in Intel, acquiring a 2% stake in the company. Additionally, in August, the US government announced a $8.9 billion investment in Intel, acquiring a 9.9% stake in the company. This included the government’s equity stake to be funded by the remaining $5.7 billion in grants previously awarded (not paid yet) under the CHIPS and Science Act and $3.2 billion awarded to the company as part of the Secure Enclave program.
These investments have positively impacted Intel’s stock price, which surged nearly 30% following the announcement of NVIDIA’s investment.
Market Scale
There have been previous discussions that while these investments provide a financial lifeline for Intel, the company faces challenges in regaining its competitive edge in the semiconductor industry. The giant faces the challenge of revitalising its position in the market.
Huang said NVIDIA would become a major customer of Intel server CPUs and a large supplier of GPU chiplets for Intel’s PC SoCs. He estimated the opportunity at up to $50 billion annually across data centres and consumer PCs.
On the equity stake, Huang expressed, “This is a big partnership, and we think it’s going to be fantastic for Intel and for us. We were delighted to be a shareholder because the return will be fantastic both in our business and in our equity share of Intel.”
Both leaders confirmed the companies had been working on the architecture for about a year and dismissed speculation of political involvement. Huang added, “The Trump administration had no involvement in this partnership. It is 100% focused on custom CPUs and consumer PCs.”
