Gelsinger backs NVIDIA’s US chip push
Former Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger praised NVIDIA for producing the first Blackwell chip wafer in the United States, calling it a step toward his long-standing vision of building advanced semiconductor products domestically. In a post on X, Gelsinger expressed support for the move, highlighting his commitment to U.S. manufacturing through initiatives like Intel’s IDM 2.0 strategy and significant investments backed by the CHIPS Act.
NVIDIA’s wafer production in Arizona marks a notable milestone, though the U.S. still lacks full self-sufficiency in chipmaking due to limited domestic OSAT capabilities, particularly in advanced packaging. Much of that work continues to rely on overseas facilities.
Gelsinger has previously criticized NVIDIA’s dominance in AI, calling its CUDA software a “moat” and arguing that NVIDIA’s chips are too costly for inference tasks. Despite this rivalry, his acknowledgment of NVIDIA’s manufacturing efforts reflects broader industry support for strengthening the U.S. semiconductor supply chain—a process expected to take years, if not decades.
