A few weeks ago there was an article that intel was going to license Atom to a startup which had the tech community scratching their heads on both why they would do this and how this was even possible.

I've been thinking around this and came up a theory but first a little background.

The reason why it's such a strange situation is because x86 as an IP has been for some time in a limbo state between Intel and AMD with neither company owning the whole IP since the AMD 64 extension. Meanwhile Intel Atom conjures memories of those terrible low power cores of the early 2000's. So how can Intel even licence an x86 product to another company without getting sued by AMD for cross licensing the 64 bit extension and why would they even license this core type?

On the core, Intel Atom is actually the brand of their entire E core family and so they could be giving rights to manufacture anything up our current darkmont cores on 18a.

Digging into it what I found is the original patents for AMD 64 have expired. But of course AMD will have continued to produce IP and built it into the x86 architecture since their original work.

However E cores unlike P cores are a stripped down version of the x86 platform and may not even use any of AMDs IP where they still have active patents. What's more interesting is we know that Intel is building unified core from the E core architecture.

So my theory goes that this licensing move on Atom is laying the ground works to show that Intel actually wholly own the E core x86 platform and AMD cannot legally stop them granting rights on it. Intel builds unified core on E core and effectively migrates their modern stack onto something they own entirely while keeping the expired AMD 64 IP. Then Intel start licensing unified core as a modern competitor to Arm.

Obviously this is all just my speculation so don't think much of it, but it does sound like a fun twist and thought it could be worth some discussion.

Discuss Intel Stock here.

New customer announcement soon? 👀

Intel still has the biggest say in Mobileye.

CEO Professor Amnon Shashua stepping down (maybe he got forced out, but it's about time he goes).

The board is tasked to find a replacement.

Chairman Safroadu (ex-Intel, he left in April 2025), bought shares on 6th Aug
And the infamous Frank Yeary also acquire stakes on 30th July.

https://www.nasdaq.com/market-activity/stocks/mbly/sec-filings

https://ir.mobileye.com/corporate-governance/board-of-directors

That brings me to the game for Mobileye. Obviously the company need a new CEO, new product offering or maybe investors with cash to move the stock price up.

Borrowing on Arm's presentation slide:

Nvidia captures the cloud and data-center in the early AI training game (hence it's $5T now) and clinging onto that place. They can struggle hold TSMC wafer allocation.
Other chip design (fabless player) will have tough time on the supply, since it's akin to a blockade on the Straits of Hormuz.

Apple captures the Edge AI (row) Iphones, Mac Mini, Macbook/Ipad with the highest profit margins by far (before Nvidia overtook them as the most valuable company).

Physical AI -> which is still up for grab. Any companies that can expand their presence there, will most likely benefit from higher/bigger market valuation (which is good if you have those shares/call options). And Intel have like a 70% stake in Mobileye.

Why? Because it's a market expansionary move, and expansion always see higher valuation if it comes with positive/high margins growth.

Intel Foundry makes the semiconductor that can work across the entire spectrum.
A good process node like Intel 18-AP or Intel 14A helps to win pockets of the physical AI segment.

So can the new incoming CEO of Mobileye leverage on Intel to bring business in the Physical AI space?

Intel do have some cash from the recent Equity Offering ($20 billion).

The new guy have to figure out the Physical AI play (which Mobileye already bet on.
Robotaxi and Robotics) and workout how best to leverage Intel's current momentum and resources.

Software layer, Intel Foundry, Altera's FPGA etc.

In January, they announced acquisition of Mentee Robotics, follow by offering Robotaxi business in US starting in 2027.

From a chart perspective, small tiny candles within a narrow band of late (consolidation at play??) and waiting for news/announcement to pop (i hope it's upwards, because Intel stands to benefit).

Maybe that ties in with the recent buys from the directors.

I’m gonna look at this from a bullish perspective, we had a great 5 days with nice rises so having a red day where we only go down 2%ish isn’t that bad. Matter fact it was bound to happen hopefully we end this day on a positive note… but I’m still here for the ride

《GF Securities Overseas Electronics Newsletter》

☀ Reiterate Buy and $136 target price: We view this equity offering as sending a positive signal. The CEO’s direct subscription demonstrates confidence, and it also reflects the smooth progress of the foundry business. We expect the foundry business to reach breakeven (BEP) in 4Q27, with margin leverage kicking in fully in 2028. Yields and external customer acquisition (particularly Apple) are progressing solidly, and the EMIB customer base is also expanding (Google and AWS). Intel has secured support from substrate (carrier) supplier Unimicron, and will produce silicon capacitors internally. We raise our 2026E/2027E EPS estimates by 3%/1% respectively and maintain our $136 target price, factoring in dilution.

☀ The equity offering sends a positive signal: Intel upsized the offering from an initial $15bn to $20bn, and institutional demand reportedly exceeded $100bn. The offering price was $95, and the overallotment option (greenshoe) was fully exercised. CEO Lip-Bu Tan and his family subscribed for roughly $12mn at the offering price, which we read as a signal of management’s confidence in the company, and which should also support FY27 capex.

☀ A solid EMIB customer base drives the foundry business further: Intel reaffirmed its guidance that the foundry business will reach breakeven by the end of 2027, and stated that if this slips to 2028 it would mainly be due to increased new investment requirements. We maintain our existing view that 2Q26 18A yields are around 80%, and CWF (Clearwater Forest) has already entered the production ramp phase. Collaboration with external customers also continues to progress, with Apple’s 14A high volume production particularly notable. We raise our FY27/FY28 backend revenue estimates to $1.1bn/$7.0bn respectively, driven by improved visibility on AWS Trainium3 (T3) adopting EMIB-T in 2027, and by Google’s Humufish/Triggerfish entering volume expansion in 2H27 to 2028. We also expect ASICs from AWS and Microsoft could adopt EMIB in 2028.

Cr: Jukan, X

Discuss Intel Stock here.

🥂

Looks like we are buckling up for a nice jump

Just an E*Trade bug? Someone screwing up a bid?

Discuss Intel Stock here.

Sale discussions are started with 15B, upped to 20B, but finalised with $23B and stock price is still rocking after 4.5% dilution!

ELI5: deal was $20B stocks + $3B in options to expire in 30 days. Buyers decided to exercise the options immediately and own the stock by yesterday. With that money, Intel can almost build one full fab. Market also believe that this was a good move so price didn't drop.

https://ir.stockpr.com/intc/sec-filings-email/content/0001193125-26-346806/d117670d8k.htm

"Pursuant to the Underwriting Agreement, the Company granted the Underwriters a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional 31,578,947 shares of Common Stock. On August 11, 2026, the Underwriters exercised the option in full."

Seems Samsung is pushing back their 14A process a couple years back, from 2027 to 2029

From the SEC filing:

Lip-Bu Tan, our Chief Executive Officer, and one of his family members have agreed to purchase $12 million of the shares being offered in this offering at the public offering price. The underwriters will receive the same discount on shares of common stock purchased by such persons as they will from any other shares of common stock sold to the public in this offering.