Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) is expected to lead its peers in the advanced 2-nanometer process technology, despite competition from Samsung Electronics Co and Intel Corp, TrendForce Corp analyst Joanne Chiao (喬安) said.
TSMC’s sophisticated products and its large production scale are expected to allow the company to continue dominating the global 2-nanometer process market this year, Chiao said.
The world’s largest contract chipmaker is scheduled to begin mass production of chips made on the 2-nanometer process in its Hsinchu fab in the second half of this year. It would also hold a ceremony on Monday next week to mark its efforts to expand 2-nanometer production in its Kaohsiung plant.
Photo: Ann Wang, Reuters
TSMC, which has grasped almost all global businesses in chips used in artificial intelligence applications by using its 3-nanometer process technology, expects its 2-nanometer process to attract even more orders, as more clients have expressed interest in using the new technology.
Samsung so far has not built a large customer base for its 2-nanometer process yet, and its major user is expected to come from its system LSI units, Chiao said.
Therefore, the top priority for the South Korean chipmaker is to improve yield rates and customer services to gain a larger share of the 2-nanometer market, she said.
A recent report from South Korea’s The Bell said that Samsung has introduced a gate-all-around architecture, which reduces undesirable variability and mobility loss, to the 2-nanometer process, as TSMC has done, but TSMC’s yield rates are more than double Samsung’s.
Meanwhile, Intel lags behind TSMC in the number of production methods, making it less flexible in meeting its clients’ demands, Chiao said.
However, Intel’s cooperation with United Microelectronics Corp (聯電) is expected to help it generate more sales in the foundry business, she added.
Even though investors might be concerned about TSMC’s expansion in the US amid geopolitical tensions, the company is expected to keep its top spot in the market, financial Web site Seeking Alpha reported on Saturday, citing Citigroup Inc analyst Laura Chen (陳佳儀).
“We believe TSMC’s near-term outlook and long-term prospects are on track, and don’t expect any potential [joint venture] to change the advanced semiconductor industry landscape,” Chen wrote in a note to clients, referencing a potential joint venture for Intel’s operations.
With TSMC announcing a new US$100 billion investment in the US over the next four years earlier this month, the company could increase capacity by as much as 20 percent or more in the advanced node part of the foundry market by 2030, Seeking Alpha reported, citing Chen.
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