#chip fab

Apple partner starts new A13 chip production for the next-gen iPhones

”Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. has started production of a new chip for Apple Inc.’s next line of iPhones launching later this year, according to people familiar with the matter,” Mark Gurman and Debby Wu report for Bloomberg. “The processor, dubbed A13, went into early test production in April and mass-production is planned for as early as this month, the people said, asking not to be…

Apple chip fabricator TSMC says a number of fab tools infected by computer virus

“Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Ltd, the world’s largest contract chipmaker, said on Saturday a number of its tools had been infected by a virus and the problem had been contained,” Reuters reports. “TSMC, a major supplier for Apple Inc, said a number of tools were infected on Friday.”

“‘TSMC has contained the problem and found a solution, and recovery of the tools is in…

“Apple’s chip manufacturer TSMC today broke ground on its first 5-nanometer fabrication facility in Taiwan, promising that 5-nanometer chips will be commercially available in 2020, with 3-nanometer chips planned for 2022,” Jeremy Horwitz reports for VentureBeat.

“The tiny new processors will guarantee that future smartphones continue to shrink while offering superior performance and…

Details leak on Intel’s upcoming Ice Lake CPU, 10nm schedule

“Intel has taken the unusual step of releasing (or leaking) information on the company’s next-next-generation processor,” Joel Hruska reports for ExtremeTech. “The new, 10nm chip will be codenamed Ice Lake and isn’t expected to debut until after Coffee Lake, which is expected to launch later this year on the 14nm++ process.”

“We already knew Intel was going to reveal new information on…

President Trump and Intel CEO announce $7 billion investment in next-gen semiconductor fab in Arizona; will create more than 10,000 jobs

Intel Corporation today announced plans to invest more than $7 billion to complete Fab 42, which is expected to be the most advanced semiconductor factory in the world. The high-volume factory is in Chandler, Ariz., and is targeted to use the 7 nanometer manufacturing process. It will produce microprocessors to power data centers and hundreds of millions of smart and connected devices worldwide.…

TSMC yield issues could hinder launch of Apple’s next-gen iPads

“Both Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company’s and Samsung’s 10nm processes have reached lower-than-expected yield rates, according to industry sources,” Josephine Lien and Jessie Shen report for DigiTimes. “TSMC has reportedly obtained 10nm chip orders from Apple, HiSilicon and MediaTek, with volume production set to kick off in the first quarter of 2017. Nevertheless, yield rates for TSMC’s…

Apple’s deadly attack on Samsung

“Previously in the ‘which manufacturer will Apple spend a lot of money with to supply chips for the new iPhone’ saga, Tim Cook decided to turn to TSMC for the fabrication of the A10 system-on-chip which is expected to lie at the heart of the iPhone 7 family,” Ewan Spence writes for Forbes. “Samsung and TSMC shared production duties on the A9 and while the two versions of the A9 had the same broad…

Post-Brexit, predators go hunting British corporate prey

“Japan’s SoftBank has pledged to double ARM’s UK workforce and could emerge as a good owner of the company, but that won’t be true of all the predators hunting British corporate prey,” James Moore reports for The Independent.

“[Chancellor of the Exchequer] Philip Hammond was moved in the wake of the deal’s announcement, to declare that ‘Britain has lost none of its allure to…