Intel shares surged to a record high on Monday after reported that Apple had been exploring early-stage talks with Intel and evaluating Samsung Electronics facilities as possible partners for future device chip production. The stock climbed as high as $110.48 in trading and later closed at $108.18, giving Intel a record market value of $543.71 billion.
The move extended a stunning run for a company that had fallen as low as $18.96 over the past year. Intel was up 174% in 2026 and 433% from a year ago, then added another 4.76% in after-hours trading. The rally also came after the U.S. government announced on August 22, 2025, a deal to acquire a roughly 10% stake in the chipmaker.
said Apple was pushing to diversify production of its core device chips beyond Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. because of reliability concerns, though the report said it may not ultimately move forward with another partner. The possibility of any tie-up matters because Apple once relied on Intel for Mac processors before road map delays and missed deadlines pushed it away from the chipmaker.
The latest discussion is still far from a deal. said Apple and Intel had discussed how to work more closely together, but described the talks as early-stage and said they may not lead to an agreement. That leaves Intel with a burst of market optimism and no guarantee that the business Apple is exploring will turn into orders.
Even so, the report lands at a moment when Intel is trying to redefine itself. Pat Gelsinger left the company in December 2024, and reported last July that Lip-Bu Tan was exploring a shift in foundry strategy toward the next-generation 14A process. Analysts Ming-Chi Kuo and Jeff Pu have also suggested Intel could eventually make some Apple-designed chips, with base M-series chips for Macs and iPads potentially starting in 2027 and non-Pro iPhone chips following in 2028. The stock move shows how quickly intel around Apple can reset expectations, even when the underlying business questions remain unresolved.
