Apple, Qualcomm and NVIDIA will become TSMC's first 3nm customers

In the second half of next year, TSMC promises to launch mass production of 3nm products. The company expects that these technological standards will attract not only the developers of mobile processors but also the players in the high-performance computing segment. NVIDIA may be one of them, according to IDC analysts.

Seeing Apple in the "lithographic vanguard" is already commonplace, as the company is trying to get the most out of the transition to a new technical process. Typically, such a migration will increase processor performance while reducing or maintaining power consumption. According to IDC experts, referred to by the South China Morning Post, in addition to Apple and Qualcomm, TSMC will be able to attract NVIDIA to its 3nm process technology. At least when it comes to first wave clients.

Experts expect that TSMC's 3nm and 2nm processes will only increase the gap between the Taiwanese company and Samsung Electronics, not to mention the Chinese SMIC. The Korean competitor will have to spend at least five years to bridge the gap with TSMC in lithography, IDC officials expect. However, Samsung intends to launch its version of the 3nm process technology into mass production in 2022, at the same time as TSMC.

According to some forecasts, the further transition of TSMC to the 2nm technical process will allow the company to increase its share in the contract services market from the current 54 to 56%, if the new technology is mastered in 2023. The company's profit margins will rise to 53% as, as the dominant player, it will be able to dictate prices to customers.