Apple has announced an "expanded partnership" with the semiconductor firm Amkor, hinting towards a shift in reliance on TSMC.
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Apple has announced through its Newsroom that the company has become the "first and largest customer" of Amkor's Arizona facility, which specializes in semiconductor manufacturing and packaging. For those unaware, Amkor has recently announced plans to build a $2 billion facility in Arizona, adjacent to where TSMC's facility is located. Apple's strategy seems evident here, they plan on capitalizing on semiconductor growth in the US, and what better situation than having two of your only suppliers in the same state, alongside each other?
Today Apple announced it will be the first and largest customer of the new Amkor manufacturing and packaging facility being developed in Peoria, Arizona. Amkor will package Apple silicon produced at the nearby TSMC fab, where Apple is also the largest customer.
Apple is deeply committed to the future of American manufacturing, and we’ll continue to expand our investment here in the United States.
Apple silicon has unlocked new levels of performance for our users, enabling them to do things they could never do before, and we are thrilled that Apple silicon will soon be produced and packaged in Arizona.
- Jeff Williams, Apple’s COO
The inclusion of Amkor in Apple's extensive list of suppliers means that the Cupertino giant has backed the efforts by the US in terms of promoting in-house semiconductor research and development since Apple has disclosed that with the cooperation of Amkor and the US government, they plan on developing "the largest outsourced advanced packaging facility in America".
Apart from the homegrown products factor, another interesting fact to note for a long time, Apple has relied on the likes of TSMC for its semiconductor packaging services, and the partnership will Amkor will reduce the reliance on the Taiwanese giant to some extent. However, Amkor is far away from achieving the semiconductor packaging standards that TSMC holds, hence it will take time for the company, but it is a step in the right direction, both for Apple/Amkor and the aim of the US towards achieving semiconductor independence, which is "decades" away according to NVIDIA's CEO.
News Source: Apple Newsroom
About the author: Muhammad Zuhair is a hardware and technology reporter for Wccftech, specializing in the semiconductor industry and the complex interplay between technology, manufacturing, and geopolitics. His coverage focuses on the corporate strategies and technological roadmaps of industry giants like TSMC, NVIDIA, Samsung, and Intel. Zuhair's expertise lies in deconstructing complex topics such as fabrication nodes (e.g., 2nm process), the economic impact of policies like the CHIPS Act, and the strategic development of AI infrastructure from NVIDIA, AMD and Intel.
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