tsmc

The AI laboratory Anthropic, which developed Claude, named TSMC in its IPO prospectus, warning that the world's most advanced chip manufacturing capacity is highly concentrated in Taiwan. The prospectus states that if TSMC's operations are disrupted, it could severely impact the supply of AI chips and affect Anthropic's business, financial condition, and operational results.According to MoneyDJ citing the prospectus, the global AI industry heavily relies on TSMC's advanced processes. Suppliers such as NVIDIA and AMD, as well as companies that design their own chips like Amazon and Google, all need TSMC to turn their designs into physical chips. The listed risks include earthquakes, typhoons, interruptions in power and water supply, as well as cross-strait geopolitical tensions, military conflicts, blockades, tariffs, and trade restrictions.The prospectus also states that if a significant event occurs in Taiwan, the supply of advanced chips could be severely hindered; due to the time-consuming nature of building and certifying alternative foundries, the impact could last for several years. The expansion of advanced processes outside Taiwan is still in its early stages, making it difficult to effectively reduce concentration risks in the short term. TSMC has been unable to fully meet market demand due to strong demand, resulting in Anthropic not being able to obtain a sufficient supply of chips in a timely manner.

According to the Industrial and Commercial Times, the supply chain reveals that TSMC's CoWoS pricing is brewing a new wave of increases, with an increase of up to 20%. Some packaging delivery times have already been extended, and the pressure from tight capacity continues to rise. The rush for capacity has spread to the equipment side, and customers have no time to negotiate prices; as long as they can promise delivery times, they place orders, with equipment delivery times extending to a maximum of 8 months.Chip manufacturers point out that the demand for advanced packaging has spread from AI GPUs to server CPUs and customized ASICs, with unfulfilled orders continuing to increase. The testing time for AI chips has lengthened, putting pressure on the synchronization of packaging and testing capacity. Wafer foundries and packaging testing companies are preparing to adjust CoWoS pricing, estimating an increase of 10% to 20%. Equipment manufacturers reveal that TSMC has not renegotiated prices this year, directly purchasing at original prices without any increase in equipment functionality, with equipment delivery times extending from the past 3 to 6 months to 6 to 8 months.TSMC Chairman C.C. Wei stated at the recent earnings call that CoWoS remains the first choice for customers, with five-fold photomask size packaging already in mass production, and the development of nine-fold and fourteen-fold photomask size solutions is ongoing, while advancing CoPoS technology. Analysts estimate that by 2026, CoWoS monthly production capacity will advance to over 130,000 pieces, aiming for 200,000 pieces by 2027; related layouts include Chiayi AP7, Tainan AP8, and AP6, with the advanced packaging plant in the U.S. AP1 planned to start production in 2028.

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According to the Industrial and Commercial Times, Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry has approved TSMC's first phase plan for the production of advanced semiconductors using 3-nanometer process at its second factory in Kumamoto Prefecture. This will be the first time a manufacturer in Japan produces 3-nanometer chips. TSMC can further expand its production capacity based on additional support from the Japanese government. Kumamoto Prefectural Governor Seiji Kimura stated that this plan will drive a new wave of creative revitalization.The Nikkei reported that the Ministry of Economy has listed the Kumamoto second factory as a recipient of subsidies, with plans to produce 3-nanometer chips, expected to officially start production in December 2028, with final capacity depending on the amount of subsidies. The Ministry will include the budget needed for subsidies in the fiscal year 2027 budget request, with the Japanese government originally planning to provide 732 billion yen in subsidies. The Asahi Shimbun pointed out that the Kumamoto second factory is still under construction and is adjacent to the already operational Kumamoto first factory.Previously, TSMC planned for the second factory to manufacture 6-nanometer and 12-nanometer processes, with a monthly capacity of 48,000 wafers, and planned to produce 40-nanometer chips; in February this year, the plan was changed to 3-nanometer, reducing the monthly capacity to 6,000 wafers. The adjustment plan for the Kumamoto first factory was also approved by the Ministry, with the original plan to produce 55,000 wafers per month covering 22 to 28 nanometers and 12 to 16 nanometers, while the new plan stops production of 12 to 16 nanometers, changing to 45,000 wafers per month for 22 to 28 nanometers.

Samsung Electronics will adopt TSMC's 3-nanometer process to produce the next generation of custom HBM chip bare dies for NVIDIA. This is the first time Samsung has collaborated with TSMC in the HBM manufacturing stage.NVIDIA has requested Samsung, SK Hynix, and Micron Technology to use TSMC's process to manufacture NVHBM bare dies and to utilize sixth-generation DRAM technology. Samsung plans to continue independently producing standard HBM and custom products for other customers.

After the release of TSMC's third-quarter financial report, the stock price fell 2% in pre-market trading, and the company is cautious about 2027.

The CEO of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSM.N) stated that TSMC has discussed capacity cooperation with Terafab, a company under Elon Musk.

The world's largest foundry, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), announced that driven by a surge in global demand for artificial intelligence processors, its net profit in the third quarter increased by 69% year-on-year, reaching a historic high and exceeding market expectations.TSMC stated that from July to September, net profit rose to 763.1 billion New Taiwan dollars (approximately 23.59 billion US dollars), surpassing the institutional expectation of 746.3 billion New Taiwan dollars.

According to a report by Central News Agency citing Reuters, Microsoft announced the launch of its third-generation self-developed AI chip, Maia 300, with plans to deploy over 1 million units next year to support internal AI services. The small chip responsible for key computing functions uses TSMC's 2-nanometer process. The Maia 300 can handle code writing and perform complex business tasks on behalf of users. The previous generation of chips has been used to run Microsoft's internal AI models and the OpenAI models provided through Microsoft Azure cloud computing services.Microsoft is taking a different technological approach compared to NVIDIA. The NVIDIA AI accelerator uses a large computing chip surrounded by high-bandwidth memory chips; the Maia 300 core processing unit is composed of small chips, with the small chips responsible for key computing functions using TSMC's 2-nanometer process, while other small chips use the lower-cost 3-nanometer process to handle data transmission out of the processor and transfer data to other locations within the system.The Maia 300 will be installed in cabinets, with each cabinet accommodating 96 chips and consuming about 167 kW of power. In contrast, NVIDIA's latest GB300 AI server cabinet is configured with 72 GPUs and consumes about 142 kW of power. Microsoft stated that it plans to deploy the Maia 300 on a large scale starting next year, reaching several gigawatts. Microsoft previously indicated that it expects its capital expenditures to exceed $175 billion this year.

The world's largest advanced AI chip foundry, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), is expected to see a year-on-year increase of 65% in net profit for the third quarter, reaching 746.3 billion New Taiwan Dollars (approximately 23.4 billion US Dollars), marking a historical high for six consecutive quarters. TSMC's revenue for the third quarter is projected to be 1.49 trillion New Taiwan Dollars (about 46.7 billion US Dollars), a year-on-year increase of 51%, exceeding market expectations.

The U.S. stock earnings season begins this week, and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company will announce its earnings report on October 15. Analysts expect its earnings per share to be $4.42, with net profit growth of 65% to 746.3 billion New Taiwan dollars. The market is focused on its assessment of AI chip demand and order plans.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company announced that its revenue for the third quarter reached 1.49 trillion New Taiwan Dollars (approximately 46.71 billion US Dollars), a year-on-year increase of 50%, setting a new historical high and exceeding market expectations of 1.46 trillion New Taiwan Dollars. Strong demand for AI applications drove this growth.

According to Jinshi reports, Citigroup analysts stated in a research report that driven by strong demand for AI computing power, the potential growth space for AI intelligent entities, and the rise of co-packaged optical network cycles, TSMC's revenue growth rate is expected to remain above 40% before 2027.The analysts noted that considering the expected acceleration in growth for most AI chip customers, including Nvidia, AMD, and Broadcom, TSMC's AI-related revenue growth rate next year may nearly double. Therefore, Citigroup expects the market to continue to raise its earnings expectations for TSMC. Citigroup also pointed out that supported by a strong revenue outlook, TSMC's capital expenditures may further rise to $81 billion in 2027 and $90 billion in 2028, maintaining a buy rating and raising the target price from NT$3,800 to NT$4,000.

Elon Musk stated that if TSMC is willing, they might be able to sublease part of the TeraFab area, but only limited to this.

AMD CEO Lisa Su has been intensively meeting with major companies such as Foxconn, Quanta, ASUS, and Acer, and has held secret meetings with TSMC. Lisa Su confirmed that AMD's plan to invest $10 billion in Taiwan will be increased due to a surge in market demand, and the company will continue to expand its supply chain investments in Taiwan.AMD is working with TSMC and suppliers to accelerate capacity enhancement to meet market demand that exceeds supply.

It has been reported that TSMC is exploring the possibility of collaborating on the Terafab project initiated by SpaceX and Tesla, and is considering it as an important customer for its future Texas wafer factory. Musk responded that it is currently only in the discussion stage, but "there may be progress."

Market news reports that TSMC is considering building a multi-billion dollar campus in Texas, USA, to produce more artificial intelligence chips.

TSMC is considering expanding its production layout in the United States, planning to build a second manufacturing base in Dallas, Texas, which may include up to 6 advanced wafer fabs.The total investment for the new wafer fabs may exceed the $265 billion that TSMC has committed to invest in its Arizona facility.TSMC has not yet made a formal response to this news.

According to the Economic Daily, citing sources from the semiconductor equipment industry, TSMC plans to expand its manufacturing presence in the United States. Following Arizona, it is set to initiate plans for a second park in the U.S., with a high likelihood of establishing six advanced wafer fabs in Dallas, Texas. Reports indicate that if the second park is launched, the total investment is expected to exceed the $265 billion in Arizona, linking Arizona's wafer manufacturing with Texas's advanced ecosystem. As of September 28, the reporter has not received a response from TSMC; supply chain operators stated that the owner has not yet notified preparations, and the board has not yet made a decision.The total investment in TSMC's wafer fab in Phoenix, Arizona, has now increased to $265 billion, with plans including six wafer fabs, two advanced packaging plants, and a research and development center. Reports suggest that TSMC's considerations for increasing its overseas presence include proximity to customers, diversification of geopolitical risks, and overcoming resource limitations such as land, water, and electricity in Taiwan. U.S. customers accounted for approximately 75.64% of TSMC's revenue in the first half of 2026.There are widespread rumors in the industry that TSMC is responding to demands from customers like NVIDIA, Intel, AMD, and Apple for local production in the U.S., while facing pressure from the U.S. government, which has threatened that chip manufacturers must relocate back to the U.S. or face tariffs of up to 200%. Dallas and North Texas are known as the "Silicon Prairie," with local factories established by Texas Instruments, Coherent, Samsung, and Tesla. Reports indicate that the Arizona facility still faces challenges such as water shortages, power shortages, and labor shortages, while Texas offers talent, lower tax burdens, and stable electricity, leading supply chain operators to believe that site evaluations are nearing completion.