Intel's Custom Chip Business Rapidly Grows to $1 Billion Run Rate
Written by Emily J. Thompson, Senior Investment Analyst
Updated: Jan 26 2026
0mins
Should l Buy INTC?
Source: NASDAQ.COM
- Massive Market Opportunity: Intel's custom ASIC business achieved an annualized revenue run rate exceeding $1 billion by the end of 2025, driven largely by soaring demand for networking AI chips, representing a $100 billion market opportunity that could significantly funnel customers into its foundry business.
- Significant Business Growth: The custom ASIC business surged over 50% in 2025 and grew 26% sequentially in Q4, indicating strong market demand and the company's potential in the custom silicon market, despite overall fourth-quarter results falling short of expectations.
- Clear Competitive Advantage: Unlike competitors such as Broadcom and Marvell, Intel can offer custom chip design services along with its proprietary x86 technology, bundled with in-house manufacturing and packaging services, providing a unique edge in rapid market responsiveness.
- Strategic Investment Commitment: Intel's CEO emphasized a commitment to invest more resources in the custom chip market, leveraging his experience at Cadence Design to elevate the company to a leading position in this underdeveloped market segment.
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Analyst Views on INTC
Wall Street analysts forecast INTC stock price to fall over the next 12 months. According to Wall Street analysts, the average 1-year price target for INTC is 39.30 USD with a low forecast of 20.00 USD and a high forecast of 52.00 USD. However, analyst price targets are subjective and often lag stock prices, so investors should focus on the objective reasons behind analyst rating changes, which better reflect the company's fundamentals.
29 Analyst Rating
5 Buy
19 Hold
5 Sell
Hold
Current: 48.240
Low
20.00
Averages
39.30
High
52.00
Current: 48.240
Low
20.00
Averages
39.30
High
52.00
About INTC
Intel Corporation is a global designer and manufacturer of semiconductor products. The Company operates through three segments: Intel Products, Intel Foundry, and All Other. Its Intel Products segment includes Client Computing Group (CCG), Data Center and AI (DCAI), Network and Edge (NEX). The CCG is bringing together the operating system, system architecture, hardware, and software application integration to enable PC experiences. DCAI delivers workload-optimized solutions to cloud service providers and enterprises, along with silicon devices for communications service providers, network and edge, and HPC customers. NEX helps networks and edge compute systems from fixed-function hardware to general-purpose compute, acceleration, and networking devices running cloud native software on programmable hardware. The Intel Foundry segment comprises technology development, manufacturing and foundry services. All Other segments include Altera, Mobileye, Other.
About the author
Emily J. Thompson
Emily J. Thompson, a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) with 12 years in investment research, graduated with honors from the Wharton School. Specializing in industrial and technology stocks, she provides in-depth analysis for Intellectia’s earnings and market brief reports.
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