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Image: Foundry
Being a technology journalist isn’t nearly as cool as you might think. Most of the time it’s just reading and analyzing information, writing, talking with people via chat and email, and occasionally trying out a cool new laptop. But once in a great while you get to see things that very, very few people ever see, like the inside of one of the world’s most advanced factories.
And by “you,” I mean Adam, Mark, and Will, not me. Because I’m too far away from Arizona to see Intel’s massive industrial fabrication center. And I’m not jealous at all, not even a little bit.
Sadly, because it’s 1) a clean facility that’s ten times as strict as an average surgical theater in terms of cleanliness and 2) stuffed floor-to-very-high-ceiling with proprietary technology and industrial secrets, the PCWorld team didn’t get to take photos or video of the brand new Fab 52-18A facility, which is gearing up to produce Intel’s next-generation Panther Lake chips for 2026.
The team did get to take notes and had a nice long chat in the Arizona sunshine about their experiences. For a deep dive on what has to be one of the most complex facilities on the planet, check out the full conversation. And if you want to be the first to know when we can actually try out Panther Lake for ourselves, subscribe to PCWorld and The Full Nerd podcast.
Author: Michael Crider, Staff Writer, PCWorld
Michael is a 10-year veteran of technology journalism, covering everything from Apple to ZTE. On PCWorld he's the resident keyboard nut, always using a new one for a review and building a new mechanical board or expanding his desktop "battlestation" in his off hours. Michael's previous bylines include Android Police, Digital Trends, Wired, Lifehacker, and How-To Geek, and he's covered events like CES and Mobile World Congress live. Michael lives in Pennsylvania where he's always looking forward to his next kayaking trip.
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English (US) ·