MediaTek is preparing a major breakthrough in advanced semiconductor packaging, with reports suggesting that one of its next-generation chip projects will be based on Intel’s EMIB-T technology instead of TSMC’s widely used CoWoS solution . The project is reportedly slated for Q4 2026 and mass production for Q4 2027 , which would position MediaTek more aggressively in the custom AI ASIC and data center chip markets.
However, MediaTek’s public stance is slightly broader: the company recently stated that it supports both TSMC CoWoS and Intel EMIB , allowing customers to choose the most suitable packaging platform. This suggests that the switch to EMIB-T appears to apply to a specific next-generation custom chip project rather than MediaTek’s entire product roadmap.
What makes Intel EMIB-T important?
Intel’s EMIB, short for Embedded Multi-die Interconnect Bridge , is an advanced packaging technology designed to connect multiple chiplets within a single package without using a large, full-size silicon interconnect. It differs from TSMC’s CoWoS , which uses a large silicon interconnect to connect logic chips and high-bandwidth memory.
In simple terms, CoWoS is powerful but expensive and has limited capacity , while Intel’s EMIB approach aims to reduce complexity by placing small silicon bridges only where high-speed connections are needed. Intel’s main advantage is the ability to reduce manufacturing costs and improve packaging flexibility, especially for large AI accelerator designs.
This is important because AI chips now rely heavily on packaging quality, not just transistor performance. High-end accelerators require fast communication between the compute chips, memory, and supporting components. If EMIB-T achieves mature production yields, it could become a serious alternative to TSMC’s CoWoS ecosystem.
MediaTek’s AI ASIC ambitions grow
MediaTek is no longer just a mobile chip company. The company has expanded into custom AI chips , enterprise ASICs , and silicon for data centers . According to Reuters, MediaTek has doubled its 2026 data center revenue forecast to $2 billion and estimates that the custom AI ASIC market could reach $70 billion to $80 billion by 2027. MediaTek is aiming for a 10% to 15% share of that market. (Reuters )
This explains why advanced packaging is becoming strategically important for MediaTek. For AI ASIC customers, performance per watt, memory bandwidth, packaging cost, and production throughput can be just as important as the chip architecture itself.
Google’s TPU connection and the «Humufish» project
Several supply chain reports link Intel’s EMIB-T chip to Google’s next-generation TPU strategy. The reported project, sometimes codenamed Humufish , is believed to be part of Google’s effort to reduce AI infrastructure costs and compete more effectively against Nvidia.
According to reports citing analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, Intel’s EMIB-T process has achieved a technical validation yield of around 90% , but the target for mass production competitiveness is closer to 98% , similar to the mature expectations for the FCBGA class. Moving from 90% to 98% is considered extremely difficult because even small performance losses can significantly increase the cost of large AI chips. (Wccftech )
This performance issue is critical. Higher performance means more usable chips per production batch, which directly reduces the cost per chip. For Google, that could be the difference between a competitive in-house TPU platform and a more expensive alternative to Nvidia GPUs.
Impact on the supply chain
MediaTek’s announced adoption of EMIB-T is already generating activity throughout the supply chain. Taiwanese reports suggest that companies like Epson Technology and Powerchip Technology could enter Intel’s EMIB-T packaging chain, while Etron Technology’s silicon capacitor technology has also been linked to AI chip projects involving MediaTek and Google.
This demonstrates that advanced packaging is no longer a secondary part of chip production. It is becoming a supply chain battleground involving substrate suppliers, capacitor suppliers, packaging companies, foundries, and hyperscale cloud customers.
What does this mean for users?
For average users, this doesn’t mean a new MediaTek smartphone will suddenly be faster in the short term. EMIB-T is primarily associated with large AI chips, cloud processors, and custom data center silicon , not standard mobile Dimensity chips for phones. However, the long-term impact could still be significant. If MediaTek and Intel can reduce the production costs of AI chips, companies like Google could run advanced AI services more efficiently. This could ultimately lead to faster cloud-based AI features, lower server costs, better availability of AI models, and more powerful smart features across Android, Google services, and future connected devices.
For Xiaomi, Redmi, and POCO users, the effect would be indirect. HyperOS’s future AI features could rely more heavily on cloud-based AI infrastructure, especially for tasks like image generation, smart search, translation, voice assistants, and large-scale model processing. If AI chip production becomes cheaper and more efficient, Xiaomi and other Android brands could benefit from more powerful cloud-based AI platforms without requiring all features to run entirely on-device. In other words, this packaging shift isn’t something users will immediately notice, but it could help drive the next generation of smarter, faster, and more affordable AI services.
