Intel And Apple Becomes First TSMC Customers For 3nm Process Chip

Because the work on technologies for the production of ever-smaller chips has stalled, Intel apparently wants to cooperate on a large scale with the contract manufacturer TSMC. The first Intel CPUs are to be produced on a 3-nanometer scale from next year, it is said.

As reported by the Japanese business service Nikkei Asia, Intel is apparently planning close cooperation with the competing chip manufacturer TSMC (Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company) in order to be able to offer chips with a smaller structure width quickly. Specifically, there is talk that TSMC could manufacture the first 3-nanometer SoCs for Intel as early as the end of 2022.

Intel May Regain Market Share From AMD

According to the report, Intel and TSMC are currently working on at least two projects for the production of CPUs for servers and notebooks with a structure width of only three nanometers. TSMC is in the process of developing the corresponding manufacturing technologies for mass use and has attracted Intel as one of the first customers alongside Apple.

By outsourcing production to TSMC, Intel wants to gain an advantage over AMD in order to regain the market share that it had recently lost to its smaller competitor. AMD has been a customer of TSMC for years and has both its APUs and graphics chips produced there. With its production of 7-nanometer chips for AMD, TSMC contributed significantly to its success over Intel.

Currently, Intel is said to have even booked a larger order volume with TSMC for the production of 3nm chips than Apple. Apple wants to use the next generation of chips in its iPad series of tablets, among other things. The jump to a structure width of just three nanometers should bring the usual advantages in terms of energy efficiency and performance.

The first Intel chips with 3nm could be produced as early as the end of 2022 if the ambitious schedule can be met. Intel has already confirmed that it is cooperating with TMSC for the product lineup for 2023, but left it open as to which chips and which manufacturing technologies are the focus.