This is all about the size of the "chip": 10 nm, 7 nm, 5 nm, 3 nm, and now the 2 nm.
The last update:
- March 1, 2021: TSMC -- Apple's main chip supplier -- ready to mass produce 3nm chips. Huge.
Now today, this story: Apple supplier TSMC readies 2 nm chips for 2024. Link here.
2 nm chips for Apple.
Intel is having trouble managing 10 nm.
From the linked article:
Apple chip supplier TSMC is planning to manufacture chips with a 2nm fabrication process by 2024.
TSMC plans to build a new factory for two-nanometer chips in Hsinchu, Taiwan.
Construction has been cleared to begin in early 2022, with equipment being installed in 2023.
..... we may tentatively expect the first 2nm Apple chips to be the "A18" or the "M5."
... it seems inevitable that the company will do so in tandem with TSMC since it is Apple's sole processor supplier with an expansive manufacturing capacity.
TSMC's manufacturing capabilities are also considerably more advanced than rival companies like Intel, which have been mired by delays and stagnation with older manufacturing processes, enabling Apple, as a major TSMC client, to maintain a competitive edge with its custom silicon chips.
Earlier this week, Intel announced plans to make chips for Qualcomm.
The A14 and M1 chip debuted in devices last year and were Apple's first chips to be manufactured with a 5nm fabrication process.
Apple is believed to have already booked an order with TSMC for 4nm custom silicon chips, which are due to begin production this year, ahead of the supplier offering 3nm chips from 2022.
2nm chips in 2024 would be another progression of this miniaturization process.
TSMC is undergoing a rapid global expansion to meet demand, building a 5nm chip facility in Arizona and expanding its 28nm factory in Nanjing, China, while also weighing up the possibility of opening new factories in Japan and Germany.
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