TSMC's US$12 billion (S$16.3 billion) factory in Arizona, US, will offer advanced 4-nanometer chips when it opens in 2024, an upgrade from previous public statements. U.S. customers such as Apple Inc. had previously urged TSMC to do so.
TSMC is expected to unveil the new plan when U.S. President Joe Biden and Commerce Secretary Raimondo travel to Phoenix next week for a ceremony, people familiar with the matter said, according to reports.
TSMC's factory was originally scheduled to be a 5-nanometer process, but the standard will be far from cutting-edge technology by 2024. The Taiwanese company will also commit to adding a second nearby factory that will produce more advanced 3-nanometer chips, the people said.
TSMC has previously mentioned that the Arizona plant will produce 20,000 wafers per month, although the output may be higher than originally planned, the people said. Apple will use about a third of that production as production ramps up.
Apple and other major tech companies rely on TSMC for their chip needs, and the change means they will be able to source more chips in the United States. Apple Chief Executive Tim Cook has previously told employees his company plans to source chips from TSMC's Arizona plant. He is scheduled to attend next week's event, people familiar with the matter said.
In addition to Apple, customers such as AMD and Nvidia have also asked TSMC to produce more advanced chips at its Arizona plant, according to people familiar with the matter.
TSMC's customers have demanded that the company launch its latest technology simultaneously in the U.S. and Taiwan, which would help achieve the Biden administration's goal of producing the world's most advanced chips on U.S. soil, the people said. But TSMC has not committed to the approach, with Taiwanese officials and the company saying they intend to keep the latest technology in Taiwan.
