TSMC 3nm monthly capacity reaches 180,000 wafers ahead of schedule

Major customers including Nvidia, AMD, and Broadcom are rushing to secure capacity, helping 3nm expansion hit targets early; 2nm has started contributing revenue and entered expansion, with year-end monthly capacity targeted at nearly 100,000 wafers.

摘要

TSMC’s 3nm process was originally scheduled to reach a monthly output target of 180,000 wafers by year-end, but is now expected to achieve that as early as the beginning of the fourth quarter this year, driven by major customers such as Nvidia, AMD, and Broadcom actively scrambling for capacity. Market sources said 3nm is currently in short supply. In addition to high-performance computing, it is also widely used in smartphone chips, including products from MediaTek and Qualcomm. Meanwhile, the 2nm process has begun contributing revenue and entered the capacity expansion phase. The market expects Taiwan to have five 2nm fabs ramping up output simultaneously this year, with monthly capacity reaching 80,000 wafers by early fourth quarter and gradually approaching 100,000 wafers by year-end. As advanced processes accelerate volume production, management has also acknowledged that the initial ramp-up of 2nm will dilute gross margin, indicating that while new nodes can boost revenue growth, they will still put short-term pressure on profitability.

术语与概念
  • 3nm process: An advanced process node used to manufacture high-end chips, currently widely adopted in smartphone and high-performance computing chips.
  • 2nm process: A more advanced next-generation chip manufacturing technology than 3nm, which has already started contributing revenue and entered the capacity expansion stage.
  • wafer: The round silicon-based material used in chip manufacturing, and also a common unit for measuring a wafer fab’s monthly capacity.