Intel’s stock plunges as work on new computer chip bogs down

SAN RAMON: Intel is falling further behind in the race to build faster and more powerful computer chips, a nagging problem that may force the Silicon Valley pioneer to seek help from other manufacturers as it scrambles to catch up in the technological arms race.

The sobering news emerged late Thursday when Intel disclosed that there will be a six-month to one-year delay on its development of a next-generation chip-making process already in use by a major Taiwan supplier, TSMC.

The unexpected snag means Intel’s 7-nanometer processing technology won’t be ready until the end of 2022 or early 2023, raising the possibility that other chip makers will already have taken another leap ahead.