The Biden-Harris Administration has also approved $6.6 billion in funding to the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) under the CHIPS and Science Act for three chip fabrication facilities in Arizona.
It comes after a smaller grant awarded in April, with the Department of Commerce verifying TSMC‘s compliance with CHIPS Act standards. These fabs will manufacture semiconductors across five advanced technologies, from 5nm through to 1.6nm (A16) process nodes.
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TSMC Secures $6.6 Billion Under CHIPS Act for Advanced Arizona Chip Plants, First Facility to Open in 2025
This funding also bolsters the U.S. semiconductor supply chain, filling a crucial national security gap created by outsourcing advanced chip production to other countries,” President Biden said. Expected to open by mid-2025, the initial facility will concentrate on 5-nanometer and 4-nanometer processes targeting GPUs and other high-performance chips. Arizona is controlled by TSMC Arizona, the firm’s US unit, which generally prevents stock buying from September 15 until expressly permitted to do so under the conditions of an agreement.
Along with that $6.6 billion grant, TSMC Arizona will also get $5 billion in loans to fund the US$65 billion capital investment needed to set up the facilities, billed by President Biden as the largest foreign direct investment in a greenfield project in U.S. history. TSMC also expects its second facility to use TSMC’s cutting-edge 2-nanometer nanosheet process when it opens, and for 2-nanometer production at the third facility to start sometime later in the decade.
This is the first reference to 4nm or A16 process node being used for TSMC Arizona in today’s announcement. A16, part of TSMC’s sub-2-nanometer family, uses marketing terminology similar to Intel’s sub-2-nanometer technologies, measured in Angstroms rather than nanometers. TSMC plans to begin mass production of its 2-nanometer process in 2025, primarily in Taiwan, while Intel’s 18A process will be manufactured in the U.S.
Initially, TSMC’s advanced chips are expected to power devices like smartphones and laptops. Currently, TSMC’s 3-nanometer products are used by companies like Apple, while NVIDIA and AMD rely on its 4-nanometer and 5-nanometer technologies. Domestic production at the Arizona facilities should bolster the supply chain for U.S.-based chip designers, reducing reliance on the Asian manufacturing ecosystem.
FAQs
When will TSMC’s Arizona facility start production?
The first facility is set to begin production by mid-2025.
What chip technologies will be produced in Arizona?
The facilities will manufacture chips ranging from 5nm to 1.6nm (A16)
