Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang Dismisses Rumors of Intel Foundry Takeover Amid AI Chip Demand and Onshoring Discussions

Nvidia CEO Refutes Intel Foundry Takeover Rumors

Nvidia Corporation's CEO Jensen Huang has firmly denied rumors of the company's involvement in potential takeover plans for Intel Corp's foundry operations. During a press briefing at Nvidia's GTC conference, Huang stated, "Nobody's invited us to a consortium. Nobody invited me. Maybe other people are involved, but I don't know. There might be a party. I wasn't invited" 1

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. This statement comes in response to recent reports suggesting that Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) had approached Nvidia and other major U.S. semiconductor firms to support a plan to manage Intel's foundry division.

AI Chip Demand and Market Dynamics

Despite the denial of involvement in Intel-related discussions, Huang provided insights into Nvidia's current market position and future outlook:

1. Blackwell Chip Orders: Huang revealed that orders for approximately 3.6 million of Nvidia's flagship Blackwell chips from four top cloud service providers "under represented" demand. This figure doesn't include orders from key customers like Meta Platforms and smaller cloud providers and startups 1

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2. Meta's AI Infrastructure Investment: Meta Platforms, one of Nvidia's largest chip buyers, has announced plans to spend up to $65 billion on AI infrastructure this year, with a significant portion expected to go towards Nvidia chips 1

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3. Market Response: Nvidia's shares saw a nearly 2% increase following Huang's analyst call, despite a 3.4% drop the previous day when investors were unconvinced by Huang's pitch about the company's positioning in the evolving AI market 1

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Onshoring Production and U.S. Manufacturing

Huang emphasized Nvidia's growing need for onshore manufacturing in the United States, particularly in light of ongoing tariff uncertainties:

1. Short-term Outlook: "In the near term, based on what we know, we're not expecting a significant impact [from Trump tariffs] on our outlook," Huang stated 2

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2. Long-term Strategy: "Long term, we want to retain the [supply chain] agility, but add a very significant part of our agility which is onshore," he added, indicating Nvidia's intention to move production to the United States in the longer term 1

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3. TSMC Collaboration: Huang confirmed Nvidia's involvement in TSMC's new chip fabrication facility in Arizona, stating, "We're in it. We are now running production silicon in Arizona" 1

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Industry Challenges and Competition

The semiconductor industry faces various challenges and competitive pressures:

1. Intel's Financial Struggles: Intel has experienced a significant stock drop of over 42% in the past 12 months and posted a net loss of $18.8 billion in 2024 2

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2. Nvidia's Market Capitalization: Nvidia has seen a substantial decline in its market capitalization, losing $420 billion since the launch of its DeepSeek initiative in January 2025 2

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3. Competitive Landscape: Despite setbacks, Nvidia continues to lead in AI technology. JPMorgan analyst Harlan Sur suggests that Nvidia remains "1-2 steps ahead" in AI acceleration 2

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As the semiconductor industry continues to evolve, with a focus on AI chip demand and onshore manufacturing, Nvidia's position and strategies will likely play a crucial role in shaping the market's future direction.