> over a decade ago but no one thought to find TSMC on a map and ask whether Intel was driving itself into the dirt?
Over a decade ago Intel wasn't driving itself into the dirt. Their failure was just beginning approximately 1 decade ago, starting with their failure at EUV leaving them trapped on 14nm.
That article is from before Intel started to decline. Quoting the end of that article:
> Intel is already the best microprocessor manufacturing company in the world
Intel was not driving themselves into the dirt if they are the best in their field. Instead, I'd suggest looking at when the process nodes were achieved:
Over a decade ago Intel wasn't driving itself into the dirt. Their failure was just beginning approximately 1 decade ago, starting with their failure at EUV leaving them trapped on 14nm.