The nanometer race is one of the most important today. This is why, with each generation, companies try to achieve smaller and smaller sizes in the internal components of their devices. Today, a report seems to predict a favorable fate for companies like Apple, Intel and Qualcomm. And it is that TSMC is about to start production of its 3nm chips.
This is how he reports Taiwan Commercial Times. The aforementioned medium be assured that TSMC has plans to start production of its 3nm chips from the second half of this 2022. Despite everything that is happening in the Asian country, the company affirms that its plans will remain intact, at least those related to these processors.
External variables, such as the war between Russia and Ukraine, and global inflation, have caused weak demand for consumer electronics, such as smartphones and laptops, which may cause a further slowdown in data center demand. and high-performance computing (HPC), and the industry has excess inventory in the semiconductor supply chain.
It’s still doubtful that it can be effectively phased out in the first half of next year, but based on historical experience, recessions often cause semiconductor companies to accelerate development of new chips.
Taiwan Commercial Times
Who will be the first to test TSMC’s 3nm chips? According to the report, the chosen one would be Apple. These components would be used for the production of the next M2 Pro processors for Macs, and the A17 Bionic for the future iPhone 15 Pro.
But Apple will not be the only beneficiary. Companies like Intel, Qualcomm, MediaTek, Broadcom, Super Micro and Huida would also be on the TSMC waiting list.
The plans of Apple, Intel and other companies with these new TSMC chips
For TSMC, Apple is a priority customer when it comes to using its new 3-nanometer technology. This is why it will be the first to be able to use them when production begins in the second half of this year 2022. Until now, we know that the next line of iPad and Mac products could have these chips.
The future M3 would also be one of those chosen to have 3nm components. Likewise, the A17 processor would be built under this lithographic processtaking the iPhone 15 Pro to a much higher level of performance.
Intel is another interested party when using this technology. Among the company’s plans we have the mass production of processors and CPUs using TSMC’s 3nm process. Nevertheless, this production would not start until the second half of next year.
AMD, meanwhile, is well behind Intel in adopting this technology. According to the aforementioned source, the adoption would come after the launch of the Zen 5 architecture in 2024.
Companies like Flight, MediaTek, Qualcomm and Broadcom will have a similar fate. They aren’t expected to adopt these new chips into mass production until after 2024.
However, keep in mind that so far nothing has been confirmed by TSMC itself. These reports are based on a knowledgeable source within the company. However, there is nothing definitive, at least in terms of official information at the moment.