TSMC’s 3nm yield rate reportedly just 55%, with Apple only paying for qualified circuits – TechNode
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Every Wednesday and Friday, TechNode’s Briefing newsletter delivers a roundup of the most important news in China tech, straight to your inbox.
TSMC is struggling with the efficiency of its new 3nm manufacturing yield, with the semiconductor giant currently hitting a yield rate of just 55%, far below the standard expected, according to a July 13 report in technology media outlet wccftech. The low yield rate has reportedly led Apple to only pay for qualified wafer batches instead of establishing a standard rate with TSMC. Apple occupies 90% of TSMC’s 3nm process production capacity for its A17 Bionic and M3 chips.
Why it matters: The iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max are widely expected to become the first smartphones powered by TSMC’s 3nm process chipset. However, TSMC’s yield rate of 55% may cause it to lose customers to competitors such as Samsung, which has reported a 60% to 70% yield rate with its 3nm process.
Details: Brett Simpson, senior analyst at Arete Research, claimed that TSMC and Apple have reached a special deal, through which Apple will only pay for functional circuits, rather than paying standard pricing for the entire wafer. If the 3nm yield rate improves to a regular 70%, the deal may be adjusted so that Apple pays up to $17,000 per wafer in the second half of 2024.
Context: In May, Samsung said in its first quarterly earnings report that its 3nm chip process had an impressive 60% to 70% yield rate. Samsung previously struggled with its 4nm process, which caused Qualcomm to partner with TSMC for the Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1 and Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 over the Korean company.
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Jessie Wu is a tech reporter based in Shanghai. She covers consumer electronics, semiconductor, and the gaming industry for TechNode. Connect with her via e-mail: [email protected]. More by Jessie Wu
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