TSMC could build CoWoS advanced packaging plants in the US and Japan because of AI demand

TSMC could build new CoWoS advanced packaging plants in the United States and Japan because of "persistently strong demand".

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In a new report from Ctee, we're learning that demand for TSMC's advanced packaging "remains high" and that rumors across the semiconductor supply chain suggest TSMC plans to consider setting up CoWoS plants in the US and Japan to "meet local needs".

TSMC's CoWoS advanced packaging supply is still tight, with production capacity and expansion expected to double in 2024, and then double again in 2025 as demand is still insane (thanks to the unstoppable demand of AI chips, mostly from NVIDIA).

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The company has its first P1 factory in Nanke Chiayi Park, with construction starting in May 2024, but suspected archaeological ruins were discovered and construction was suspended. The second CoWoS factory (P2 factory) project was started simultaneously, with Ranjiake expected to complete the work in the "near future" and then hand it over to TSMC to continue construction (which Ctee reports will "not affect the installation schedule" in Q3 2025.

The CoWoS advanced packaging supply chain has experienced the "highest demand in the semiconductor industry" since 2013, and TSMC is at full capacity throughout the rest of 2024, and into the 2025 and 2026 right now, so it needs to get as many CoWoS advanced packaging plants up ASAP.

NVIDIA's next-gen Rubin R100 AI GPU will feature next-gen HBM4 memory, and will use TSMC's new CoWoS-L advanced packaging, arriving in 2025. NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang recently called SK hynix bosses, telling them to bring their next-gen HBM4 memory and its release forward by 6 months.