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TSMC is making Apple chips in Phoenix, Arizona

MacDailyNews

Oct 16

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Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) has reportedly started making its first chips (Apple A16 Bionic) for major customer Apple, at its new fabrication plant in Phoenix, Arizona.

Tim Cuplan via Substack:
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The latest information I received on the Apple project indicates shipments of the A16 could come before the end of this year, a symbolic move which would allow TSMC to ship ahead of the “early 2025” schedule. TSMC is in talks with a number of clients to tape out products in Arizona next year. AMD is likely to be next, making it the second customer, but it is possible another chip designer will land there first.
An important step in the process of building an American AI supply chain came last week from Arizona and is related to AMD’s Made in the USA move. TSMC and Amkor announced they’d collaborate on advanced packaging, including both Integrated Fan-Out (InFO) and Chip-on-Wafer-on-Substrate (CoWoS).
The two have been long-term partners but eagle-eyed observers will note the importance of CoWoS being part of the pact: the technology is patented and the term is a registered trademark of TSMC. That’s a massive step for Amkor, but also a good development for TSMC…
At the moment, and for the foreseeable future, wafers of US-made chips for both Apple and AMD are likely to be sent back to Taiwan for packaging. But when Amkor’s new Arizona facility gets up and running it will theoretically be able to do that work locally. Amkor last November announced plans for a $2 billion plant, with production to commence “within the next two to three years.” Amkor said Apple will be the first and largest client of the new factory. That timeline seems a little murky now, with a July statement putting it at “within three years.”

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MacDailyNews Note: Last month, TSMC achieved production yields at its Arizona facility on par with established plants in Taiwan, an early indicator that its marquee American project is on track to achieve its ambitious targets.

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