Intel’s EMIB-T packaging appears to be getting more attention as TSMC’s AI packaging queue comes under serious pressure.
Aggressive AI demand is clogging TSMC’s packaging resources, and fresh chatter from Taiwan suggests Intel’s EMIB-T is gaining ground with Google.
Chipzilla has pitched EMIB, short for Embedded Multi-die Interconnect Bridge, as an alternative to TSMC’s Chip-on-Wafer-on-Substrate technology. That mouthful, known as CoWoS, is used to bolt AI GPUs together with parts such as memory.
Google is expected to become a major EMIB customer, with recent reports suggesting that more firms may be involved in the packaging chain for its next custom tensor processing unit chips.
Chipzilla’s EMIB-T, which uses through-silicon vias for connectivity, has been rattling around the supply chain rumour mill for a while. Reports have suggested it could be used for Google’s next-generation AI TPU chips.
One of the first reports came from Taiwanese outlet Commercial Times in late April, claiming Google was considering EMIB-T for its packaging needs. Chip packaging sticks the compute chip, such as a CPU or GPU, together with other components including memory.
It became one of the first bottlenecks of the AI boom, because everyone suddenly wanted mountains of accelerators and the plumbing to make them useful. Chipzilla’s role in Google’s TPU supply chain appears to come through Google’s partnership with MediaTek.
A fresh report from China Times says Taiwan’s Powerchip Semiconductor and AP Memory Technology have joined Google’s TPU supply chain. Powerchip, or PSMC, is a foundry company, while AP Memory designs integrated circuits.
The report claims AP Memory’s silicon capacitor products play a key role in MediaTek’s design of Google’s AI chips. However, SiCap production is expected to sit at 10,000 capacitors by the end of 2027. That means Powerchip could be dragged in to help expand production as EMIB demand grows.
The rumours suggest executives from Powerchip and AP Memory could meet Intel chief executive Lip-Bu Tan about their roles in the supply chain. While Chipzilla is expected to package Google’s next-generation TPUs, final orders may depend on production yield.
Google is reportedly considering sending chip designs directly to TSMC rather than working through MediaTek, which would save cash and cut out a middleman. Chipzilla claims EMIB has several advantages over CoWoS, including lower costs, better scalability and performance comparable with higher-end technologies such as SoW.
