TSMC sets 'volume production' target date for 1.6nm chip

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) is planning on increasing production of its 2nm chips throughout 2024 in preparation for its cutting-edge 1.6nm chips to hit "volume production" in 2026.

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TSMC, the world's best semiconductor company, is preparing to secure more chip manufacturing contracts as throughout 2025, expenditure is expected to increase to between $38 and $42 billion. TSMC recently reported its Q4 earnings, and according to the document, revenue increased by up to 37% year-on-year to $26.88 billion, but it anticipates a slight drop of 5.5% due to "smartphone seasonality."

Despite the current hurdle, TSMC doesn't seem to at all, as vice chairman and CEO C.C. Wei spoke on an analyst conference call and said TSMC expects 2025 to be another year of substantial growth for the company, with internal forecasting of its revenue pointing to an approximate 20% increase.

As for what TSMC has in its pipeline, the company states it is "well on track" for volume production of its cutting-edge 2nm node during the second half of 2025, which is expected to provide between 10 and 15% speed improvement while using the same power. Or, a 20 to 20% power improvement at the same speed, while increasing its density by more than 15%.

Moving on to 1.6nm, TSMC says its scheduled to produce the first 1.6nm chips by 2026, and they are expected to offer between 8 and 10% speed improvement at the same power compared to the 2nm chips. There will also be an additional 7 to 10% density improvement.

"Volume production is scheduled for second half 2026," Wei claimed