China-US and Taiwan relations have been strained after the visit of Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the US House of Representatives. China, which sees Taiwan as a part of the mainland, is pushing the borders with its exercises. Apple, on the other hand, seeks not to damage relations with both Chinese and Taiwanese companies. In this sense, Apple gave suggestions to suppliers to provide solutions for the China-Taiwan tension.
How will the China-Taiwan tension not affect the supply for the Apple iPhone 14 and M2 Macbook Pro?
In the solution it offered to suppliers, Apple actually moved towards the strong side of the war. China tensed with Taiwan, whose independence it did not recognize. Apple, on the other hand, has asked its suppliers to include the phrase “Chinese Taiwan” on products made in Taiwan. Thus, Apple is trying to play its cards right for the China Taiwan tension.
This move, which supports China’s arguments, also aims to ensure that Apple continues its partnership with TSMC for the iPhone 14 and M2 chips. The company, which continues the production of iPhone 14 at full speed for the moment, is in search of ensuring the smooth production of the new A16 Bionic chip. Again, Apple has started to look for parts supply alternatives for iPhone 14 production.
Judging by the latest information, the A16 Bionic processor will not go through TSMC’s 4 nm fabrication process. Accordingly, the new processor will again appear with a 5 nm fabrication process. One of the main reasons for this situation is that 4 nm processors are not yet working at full efficiency. Despite the production of TSMC, even the MediaTek Dimensity 9000 model came to the fore with heating problems.
On the other hand, despite the leaks, Apple can surprise the users with 4 nm with the A16 Bionic processor used for the production of the iPhone 14. It is among the latest information that TSMC is also ready for the 3 nm process. However, it is unclear whether this new fabrication process will take effect this year.
As you know, the M2 processor family in Apple’s new MacBook Pro models is also ARM-based. In this sense, TSMC is the company that produces the processor. It is a matter of curiosity how much the company in Taiwan will be affected by this crisis. Estimates are that even if China uses its right of annexation, it will not harm strategic points like TSMC.
Again, Taiwan hosts critical companies for HDD and SSD production. In a previous flood disaster, especially HDD prices showed a great increase. It is also expected that a similar crisis will affect technology access all over the world in every sense.