The agreement gives Nvidia access to IBM's foundry services and manufacturing technologies, including copper wiring and a roadmap that leads to 65 nanometer circuitry.
IBM plans to begin manufacturing processors for Nvidia this summer at IBM's new $2.5 billion chip-making facility in East Fishkill, New York.
Some analysts believe that Nvidia's decision to go with IBM for wafer production is a good thing for ATI -- that Nvidia was having problems with TSMC (who ATI also uses). As such, the switch might provide ATI with a chance to gain some ground on Nvidia and strengthen its relationship with TSMC.
