It has been known for several months that Apple will use TSMC’s 3nm manufacturing process in its next-generation chips, including the M3 series processors for Macs and the A17 Bionic for some next-generation iPhones. However, according to new information, Apple is almost exploiting TSMC’s 3nm production lines. According to a new report from The Information, Apple places billions of dollars’ worth of bulk chip orders with TSMC, in which TSMC incurs the cost of faulty processor dies.TSMC only works for Apple
For those who don’t know, manufacturers use large silicon wafers to build multiple chips at once, and the plate is then sliced into many separate processor dies. In new production processes such as 3nm, there is a high probability of defects in the molds obtained from these plates. There are different aspects of this defect, sometimes some of these patterns work and some do not. Sometimes they do not show the desired performance. Normally, on the other hand, chip designers have to pay for each die, whether they work or not. But apparently Apple’s orders to TSMC are large enough that TSMC can afford not to charge Apple for defective molds.
Sources say that Apple is responsible for 23 percent of TSMC’s $72 billion in 2022, making Apple by far the largest customer of TSMC. However, Apple’s TSMC’s 3 nm technology will reportedly be exclusive to Apple for “about a year” before it has the capacity to allow other companies to use it.
TSMC currently manufactures most of the high-performance CPUs, GPUs and chips for many of the world’s largest chip companies. Apple, Nvidia, AMD, and Qualcomm have all started using TSCM’s bands for their cutting-edge products, switching from competitors like Samsung and GlobalFoundries. Additionally, both Samsung and Intel ship or are preparing to ship 3 nm technology, but different companies
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