Intel caused a minor stir earlier this month when it signed an agreement to start manufacturing chips for FPGA upstart Achronix Semiconductor at one of its cutting-edge facilities. Now the company has announced that it will be letting another small company leverage its manufacturing muscle as it continues to open the doors to its foundry business.
The business in question is Lilliputian Systems which has developed a butane-based 'Personal Power solution' that can be used to charge mobile devices on the go. The device, which is expected to be about the size of pack of cards, uses a solid oxide fuel cell to efficiently convert the lighter-fluid to electricity which can charge devices through a USB port. Despite the potentially explosive nature of the fuel cartridges, they have already been approved for use on planes.
The agreement will see Intel producing specially designed 200mm silicon wafers that are instrumental to the production of Lilliputian's products. The chip-giant's investment arm has also provided an undisclosed amount of capital to the start-up, along with 17 other companies across the globe.
A cursory glance might make this look like Intel is just expanding further into the foundry business. However, its involvement with small, innovative companies whose needs account for a tiny fraction of its total production capacity hint at a calculated, strategic move rather than a financial one. Intel is obviously choosing its partners very carefully and seems to be selecting companies that are developing unique technologies that could be important to its products and strategies in the future.
