Intel To Utilize TSMC’s 2nm Process In Next-Gen “Nova Lake” CPUs, Apple a Primary Client As Well

TSMC's 2nm process has attracted significant client interest, with the likes of Apple and Intel lining up to secure the initial production batch amid huge demand.

Taiwan Economic Daily reports that TSMC's first batch of 2nm chips, which are expected to come into production by 2025, has reportedly gained interest from Apple, Intel, and other companies. Since Apple has been an exclusive customer of TSMC, it is said that the firm has managed to reserve a portion of the 2nm supply for its next-generation iPhones, and as stated previously, we might see the debut of the process with Apple's iPhone 17 Pro, which will feature successors of the A-series SoCs, given that the company sticks to its current naming scheme.

Apart from Apple, it is being reported that Team Blue might slide into the list of TSMC's 2nm clients since the firm is expected to utilize it for its future Nova Lake CPU lineup. The mention of Nova Lake in the industry hasn't been that much, mainly since the release is still years away, but we did see a glimpse of it just recently when the famous software application HWiNFO added support for the lineup's integrated graphics, which is either going to be an upgraded version of Xe3-LPG, or Intel might decide to add the "Druid" architecture.

While we don't have many specifics about Nova Lake CPUs yet, it is rumored to be the biggest architectural uplift in Intel's history, even bigger than the Core architecture itself. The CPU performance improvement is rumored to be more than 50% over the Lunar Lake chips, which is why the choice of Intel to opt for TSMC's 2nm process makes sense, as the company's foundry service is lacking with cutting-edge processes, and to stay competitive in next-gen markets, the firm needs to adopt a more "mature" semiconductor supplier. The CPUs are targeting a 2026 release window.

Intel Foundry is progressing at a steady rate, especially when the firm announced a collaboration with Taiwan's second-largest foundry, UMC, but for now, it seems like IFS hasn't managed to gain confidence in its upcoming processes. Even though the company's "apparently" more superior 18A process will come into production by H2 2024, opting for TSMC's 2nm for its mainstream CPU architecture does raise questions about Intel's approach with its semiconductor division, but let's not jump into conclusions here.

News Source: Taiwan Economic Daily