TSMC’s 3nm foundry price exceeded $20,000, the price increase of iPhone and graphics cards may be inevitable
In 2019, AMD launched the Ryzen 3000 series processors based on the Zen 2 architecture, manufactured using TSMC’s 7nm process. There is no doubt that this is an overall victory for AMD and TSMC. Even if Intel tried its best to justify its technological leadership at a certain process node, it could not cover up the light of AMD and TSMC. When Intel decided to find TSMC as a foundry, it explained the current position of the two parties from the side.
TSMC successfully introduced EUV (extreme ultraviolet light) at the 7nm process node, and then the 5nm process node widened the gap with other foundries. Apple, AMD, Nvidia, MediaTek, Broadcom, Qualcomm, and other major chip design companies in the industry have placed orders. A more advanced process means higher costs, and the price of each wafer has risen.
According to DigiTimes, in 2014, TSMC’s 28nm quotation exceeded $3,000, which is enough to meet the process node of chips used in most products. In the 7nm era, the quotation is close to $10,000, and 5nm is more than 16,000 US dollars, and it is expected to rise by 6% next year. Some semiconductor practitioners said that the foundry price of the 5nm process node is already very high, and the quotation of the 3nm process has reached $20,000, and the cost increase is quite obvious.
Manufacturers also pass on the cost to downstream customers, so new equipment terminals are becoming more and more expensive.
Manufacturers also pass on the cost to downstream customers, so new equipment terminals are becoming more and more expensive.
Recently, Nvidia’s GeForce RTX 40 series graphics cards based on the Ada Lovelace architecture have been launched for sale, and the initial price is significantly higher than that of the GeForce RTX 30 series graphics cards in 2020. Many gamers complained about Nvidia’s price increase against the trend in the face of weak market demand and high inventory. However, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang bluntly said that due to rising costs, the price adjustment is reasonable.
Although the prices of the iPhone 14 series smartphones released by Apple this year have not soared significantly. However, some insiders said that as the A17 Bionic equipped with the iPhone 15 series next year is likely to adopt a new process, coupled with the rising cost of other components and the pressure of global inflation, it seems inevitable to increase the price.
