GlobalFoundries unveils 7nm-class FDX Fusion chip platform with 2028 Dresden manufacturing target

GlobalFoundries is making a significant push into the physical AI market with a new 7nm-class FDX Fusion chip platform, targeting real-time sensing, processing, and edge connectivity for devices that need to think fast and run cool. The company plans to begin manufacturing at its Dresden, Germany facility in 2028, timed to coincide with a major capacity expansion that has been years in the making. The announcement puts GlobalFoundries squarely in competition for a market it believes could exceed $18 billion by 2030, centered on what the industry is calling physical AI: the layer of intelligent processing that sits between raw sensor data and real-world action. What FDX actually is, and why it matters for edge AI FDX stands for Fully Depleted Silicon-on-Insulator, a planar chip architecture that differs meaningfully from the FinFET processes used by leading-edge fabs like TSMC and Samsung. Think of FinFET as a three-dimensional transistor that stands upright on the chip, and FD-SOI as a flatter design that sits on an insulating layer, which dramatically reduces power leakage. Physical AI applications, whether in a car’s sensor array, an industrial robot, or a connected medical devic...