Apple has held "exploratory" talks with Intel and Samsung about manufacturing the main processors for its devices in the United States, reports Bloomberg ($).
Apple is said to have had early-stage talks with Intel about using its chipmaking services, while Apple executives have reportedly visited a Samsung plant under construction in Texas that will also make advanced chips.
The talks are said to be preliminary, and no orders have been made so far, according to the report's sources who asked not to be identified. Apple is also said to have concerns about using technology that is not made by its longtime chip partner, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), so the talks could still go nowhere.
Apple is said to be seeking potential additional suppliers beyond TSMC as a way to avoid recent shortages almost entirely driven by the current build-out of AI data centers.
Heavy demand for Mac mini and Mac Studio models - sought-after because of their suitability for running local AI models - is also said to have been another factor. On an earnings call last week, Apple CEO Tim Cook acknowledged that Mac mini and Mac Studio supply is constrained, and he said it may take "several months" for Apple to achieve supply-demand balance.
Neither Intel nor Samsung can reliably provide the kind of production and scale that TSMC offers, so it's not clear how much, if anything, will come out of the discussions. Apple has already worked with TSMC to help expand its plant in Phoenix, which is now producing a limited number of chips for Apple and expects to make 100 million chips for the company in 2026.
