Apple will be the first to receive 2-nanometer chips from TSMC
Apple will be the first company to receive chips manufactured using TSMC’s upcoming 2-nanometer process, DigiTimes reports. According to the publication’s sources, Apple is “considered to be the first customer to use this technological process.”
TSMC is expected to start producing 2nm chips in the second half of 2025. Terms such as “3nm” and “2nm” refer to the specific architecture and design rules that TSMC uses for a family of chips. Reducing the size of the node corresponds to a smaller transistor size, so more transistors can fit on the processor, resulting in faster speeds and more efficient power consumption.
This year, Apple switched to 3-nm chips for its iPhones and Macs. Both the A17 Pro chip in the iPhone 15 Pro and the M3 series chips in Macs are based on a 3-nm process, which is an upgrade from the previous 5-nm process. The transition from 5nm to 3nm technology has brought a noticeable increase in the speed of the GPU by 20%, the CPU by 10%, and a twice as fast neural engine in the iPhone, as well as similar improvements in the Mac.
TSMC is building two new facilities for the production of 2-nm chips and is working on obtaining a permit for the construction of a third. TSMC typically builds new fabs when it needs to increase production capacity to fulfill significant chip orders, and TSMC is expanding largely for 2nm technology. The transition to 2nm will lead TSMC to switch to GAAFETs (gate-all-around field effect transistors) with nanosheets instead of FinFETs, so the manufacturing process will be more complex. GAAFETs provide higher speeds with a smaller transistor size and lower operating voltage.
TSMC is spending billions on these changes, and Apple will also need to make changes to its chip design to accommodate the new technology. Apple is a major TSMC customer, and it is usually the first to receive new TSMC chips. For example, in 2023, Apple purchased all of TSMC’s 3-nanometer chips for the iPhone, iPad, and Mac.
In the gap between 3nm and 2-nm nodes, TSMC will introduce several new 3nm enhancements. TSMC has already released the N3E and N3P chips, which are advanced 3nm processes, and other chips in the works, such as the N3X for high-performance computing and the N3AE for automotive applications.
There are rumors that TSMC is already starting to work on more advanced 1.4-nanometer chips, which are expected to be released in 2027. Apple is said to be looking to reserve TSMC’s initial production capacity for both 1.4nm and 1nm technologies.
