Intel carries more of the AI build-out burden than NVIDIA

Intel and NVIDIA are both supply-constrained as customers seek more compute than either company can deliver. NVIDIA is capturing that shortage through sales, with management guiding fiscal 2028 revenue growth at roughly 70% and saying customer forecasts point to demand doubling.

Intel is absorbing the build-out costs first. The company lifted 2026 capital spending to more than $20 billion, said 2027 would run significantly above that, and later sold $20 billion of common stock. With trailing twelve-month revenue of about $57 billion, Intel is committing major capital before new capacity begins generating returns.

NVIDIA’s position remains stronger on profitability. Each gigawatt of AI data center tied to the Vera Rubin generation is worth roughly $40 billion to NVIDIA, compared with $25 billion on Blackwell and about $18 billion in the Hopper era. Its operating margin of 65.2% and net margin of 63.7% contrast with Intel’s 7.6% operating margin and -19.8% net margin.

Intel has momentum in AI-related businesses, but its foundry effort remains a drag. AI-driven businesses grew more than 70% year over year in fiscal Q2 2026 and accounted for about 70% of revenue, while Intel Foundry sold just $293 million to outside customers and lost $2.1 billion.