Intel is making headway in its ambitious effort to revamp its foundry business, as several customers have signaled plans to build test chips using the company’s upcoming 14A manufacturing process—still in development. The move was revealed during the company’s Direct Connect conference held on Tuesday in San Jose, California.

The announcement comes as new CEO Lip-Bu Tan, just five weeks into the role, outlined his commitment to reshaping Intel’s manufacturing strategy in a bid to better compete with dominant industry players like TSMC. “The answer is 'yes',” Tan said when asked if Intel would stay the course with its foundry initiative. “I'm committed to making the Intel foundry successful, and I know there are areas we need to improve.”

Intel's contract chip business has faced hurdles in recent years, struggling to win significant ground against Taiwan-based TSMC. The foundry revamp is central to Tan’s broader strategy to regain technological leadership and regain customer trust.

Part of Intel’s foundry roadmap involves deploying high numerical aperture (high-NA) extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography machines—cutting-edge tools expected to streamline chip production by reducing the number of manufacturing steps. The 14A node, which will incorporate high-NA EUV and a new power delivery architecture, marks Intel’s bold shift away from its previous hesitancy to embrace EUV technology. That earlier reluctance allowed competitors like TSMC to gain significant technological ground during the 2010s.

Still, Intel is building in flexibility. Foundry chief Naga Chandrasekaran said customers using 14A will have the option to stick with more mature, proven technologies and won't be required to overhaul existing designs. The company has also begun distributing early versions of its digital design kit (DDK), a crucial step toward enabling customers to move from blueprint to silicon with the new node.

Chandrasekaran acknowledged that the company’s other next-gen node, 18A, has experienced "ups and downs" but reaffirmed that progress is ongoing. Intel expects to ramp up high-volume production on the 18A process by the second half of 2025. According to prior reports, major chipmakers like Broadcom and Nvidia have already tested this process.

Production will begin at Intel's R&D facility in Hillsboro, Oregon, before scaling up at factories in Arizona later this year.

Though Intel shares remained only slightly higher in mid-afternoon trading, investor interest appears cautiously optimistic as the company pushes to turn a corner in its manufacturing revival.