Intel and Ericsson forge strategic collaboration for next-gen 5G infrastructure

Intel and Ericsson have announced a strategic collaboration that will see Intel manufacturing custom 5G system-on-chip (SoC) units for Ericsson’s future 5G infrastructure. The partnership will use Intel’s 18A process and manufacturing technology, the most advanced node on the company’s roadmap. This collaboration aims to optimize 4th Gen Intel® Xeon® Scalable processors with Intel vRAN Boost for Ericsson’s Cloud RAN (radio access network) solutions.

This collaboration between Intel and Ericsson seeks to increase network capacity and energy efficiency while also providing more flexibility and scalability for communications service providers. The two technology leaders are focusing on creating open, reliable, and future-ready networks.

Sachin Katti, senior vice president and general manager of the Network and Edge group at Intel, said, “This agreement exemplifies our shared vision to innovate and transform network connectivity, and it reinforces the growing customer confidence in our process and manufacturing technology.”

Intel’s advanced 18A node technology to power Ericsson’s future 5G infrastructure. (Photo courtesy of Intel Corporation)

Intel’s 18A node technology includes a new gate-all-around transistor architecture – known as RibbonFET – and backside power delivery – called PowerVia. These technologies are set to bring Intel back to the process leadership position in 2025.

Fredrik Jejdling, executive vice president and head of Networks at Ericsson, noted, “Ericsson has a long history of close collaboration with Intel, and we are pleased to expand this further as we utilize Intel to manufacture our future custom 5G SoCs on their 18A process node.”

As 5G deployment continues, both companies are committed to the idea of open software-defined networks, powered by cloud-native technologies, leading the future. The aim is to realize the best performance, innovation, and global scale by working together and synchronizing network specifications as part of one global set of standards.