While the Trump administration has approached TSMC about taking over Intel’s foundry division, it does not want the iconic chipmaker’s business to be wholly foreign-owned.

Visitors are visiting the exhibition area of TSMC at the 2024 World Semiconductor Congress in Nanjing, China, on June 5, 2024. (Photo by Costfoto/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

Rounak Jain·Stocktwits

Updated Jul 02, 2025 | 8:31 PM GMT-04

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Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Ltd. (TSMC) has sent out feelers to peer semiconductor companies Nvidia Corp. (NVDA), Broadcom Inc. (AVGO), and Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (AMD) to come together for Intel Corp.’s (INTC) foundry joint venture, according to a Reuters report on Wednesday citing unnamed sources.

The report adds that while TSMC will run Intel’s foundry business, its stake will remain under 50%.

Intel’s most recent filings reveal that the foundry business’ property and plant equipment had a book value of $108 billion as of Dec. 31, 2024.

While the Trump administration has approached TSMC about taking over Intel’s foundry division, it does not want the iconic chipmaker’s business to be wholly foreign-owned.

Looping in U.S.-based semiconductor players could help TSMC overcome this hurdle.

Intel, on the other hand, has been staring down the barrel for a while now. While it brought on Pat Gelsinger to turn around its fortunes, the company’s board forced the industry veteran out in December.

With Gelsinger out and no full-time CEO to steer Intel, hiving off the foundry business could help the iconic chipmaker.

The report added that Intel’s executives have held discussions with TSMC, but the specifics are not yet known.

On Stocktwits, retail sentiment around the TSMC stock showed uncertainty among investors.

TSMC retail sentiment.jpg — TSMC sentiment and message volume March 12, 2025, as of 3 am ET | Source: Stocktwits

One user thinks if the markets don’t nosedive, Intel could surge more than 20% because of this development.

Another user sounded bullish about the strength of Intel’s foundry business, given that TSMC has reportedly sought partnerships with not one but three other major semiconductor companies.

TSMC’s stock has slipped in 2025, falling over 15% year-to-date. However, over the past year, it has gained more than 19%.

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Also See: TSMC Posts Strong Start To 2025 With 39% Revenue Surge In 2 Months, Retail Cheers Despite Trump Tariff Worries