Intel, behind in AI chips, bets on quantum and neuromorphic processors

Intel for years chopped critical products including CPUs, GPUs and networking gear to cut corporate fat and get back into shape.

Many cuts pre-date the appointment last year of Lip-Bu Tan as CEO. Now, Tan is placing a long-term bet beyond the current crop of AI chips and doubling down on quantum processors and neuromorphic chips, which survived Intel’s earlier product cuts.

Tan has now tapped company veteran Pushkar Ranade to be Intel’s new chief technology officer, with a mission to drive developments in “quantum computing, neuromorphic computing, photonics, and novel materials,” the chipmaker announced this week.

The move is a longer-term bet, according to Dylan Patel, CEO of semiconductor research firm SemiAnalysis. “It’s a bit further out stuff he is doing, so it wouldn’t help with the next two years of products,” he said, adding that Ranade is an excellent choice for Intel’s move into future computing models.

Multiple analysts said Intel’s quantum group has been hindered by limited funding and resources and hurt by staff turnover. Former CEO Pat Gelsinger and CTO Greg Lavender departed the company last year.

Quantum uncertainty

There’s very little known about Intel’s quantum computing efforts. The company’s most recent quantum chip, Tunnel Falls, was announced back in 2023.

But there’s leadership continuity, with quantum hardware leader James Clarke and quantum systems and software leader Anne Matsuura still at the company.

“Maybe this means Lip-Bu wants to [reorient] Intel’s focus and investment in quantum computing,” said Jim McGregor, principal analyst at Tirias Research.

Intel has a solid record of success with technology moonshots, and its neuromorphic chip development is the best in the business, said Ian Cutress, chief analyst at semiconductor consulting firm More Than Moore.

“Intel’s [quantum] approach, since [former CEO Robert] Swan took over, to be honest, has been a lot less public. They would need to match — if not surpass — to develop their current quantum technologies beyond their competitors,” he said.

One of those competitors, IBM, is far ahead with its quantum efforts. The company has a quantum cloud available for rental now and a mature product plan for the next several years. IBM has “an open roadmap to 2033, which they’ve been working on since 2022, and every year they’ve been hitting their targets like clockwork,” Cutress said.

Intel’s investment arm, Intel Capital, recently invested $178 million in quantum processor company QuantWare. But an investment by Intel Capital doesn’t always mean Intel adopts a technology.

Nonetheless, enterprises should take a measured view of Intel’s pivot and “always take emerging technology talk with a grain of salt,” said Cutress. He argued that the long legacy of digital computing architecture is difficult to unseat.

“The reality is that any technology that comes from this side of R&D is going to work alongside current high-performance hardware, not replace it,” he said.

The hardware stack will likely look like a combination of CPU, GPU, and quantum computing chips in a datacenter, not just a quantum processor working on its own, Cutress said.

“IBM, Google, Microsoft have realized this and are pivoting those messages,” he said.

Quantum processors and AI supercomputers naturally complement each other, said Pranav Gokhale, co-founder and CTO of Infleqtion, which makes quantum processors. “Quantum computers can access physics that is difficult for classical machines to emulate, while GPUs provide the scale and throughput needed for control and learning.”

Intel’s spin-bit quantum technology, which differs from IBM’s supercomputing qubit, may be interesting technology, but many companies — including Quantum Motion, Silicon Quantum Computing, Photonic, and CEA-Leti — are pursuing similar approaches.

Quantum advantage

Still, Intel has a manufacturing advantage.

“Intel’s approach to CMOS spin qubits has one advantage over many other solutions — you can put millions on a wafer, and Intel has reliable manufacturing to do so,” Cutress said.

The appointment of Ranade, who has served in key manufacturing roles, to CTO is another clear sign that the foundry is Intel’s future. Former CTO Greg Lavender was seen more as a software person.

“He’s a process node guy, he knows what the process needs to work for customers, both internal and external,” Cutress said of Ranade.

Intel did not immediately respond to a request for comment on its plans.

This article first appeared on Network World.