Apple Commits $30 Billion To Broadcom For The Secretive Baltra ASIC And A Host Of Wireless And RF Components, The Biggest Piece Yet Of Its $600 Billion American Manufacturing Bet

Apple now expects to spend over $30 billion on Broadcom till 2031 to realize its lofty ambitions vis-à-vis the so-called Baltra ASIC, while securing preferential access to advanced radio frequency and wireless components. The deal is the biggest component of Apple's $600 billion American Manufacturing Program (AMP) so far.

Tim Cook: "[This is] our largest ever American Manufacturing Program commitment and an important step in our work to build an end-to-end silicon supply chain in the US"

For the benefit of those who might not be aware, Apple is investing around $600 billion in the US over the coming 4 years or so to:

1. Create a domestic end-to-end silicon supply chain by roping in partners at each stage of the silicon design and production process, including GlobalWafers America, Texas Instruments, Samsung, and Amkor.
2. Expand partnerships with companies like Corning to source domestically produced display glass.
3. Establish a new AI server manufacturing facility in Houston.
4. Undertake a rapid expansion of its datacenter capacity in states such as North Carolina, Iowa, Oregon, Arizona, and Nevada.
5. Create thousands of new jobs and has already opened a "Manufacturing Academy" in Detroit to train workers.
6. Bolster its R&D activities, especially in silicon engineering, software development, and AI spheres.

This AMP was a critical factor in the Trump administration's calculus to exempt Apple from certain punitive tariffs in 2025. And, while it might not be very flashy, the program is steadily moving ahead towards its set goals. For instance, back in March 2026, we noted that Apple's server manufacturing cadence at its Houston plant was tagging the 10-server-per-hour threshold. Additionally, Apple also plans to manufacture its Mac mini devices at the said Houston plant. In the same month, Apple also roped in Bosch, Cirrus Logic, TDK, and Qnity Electronics to its AMP push.

This brings us to the core of today's topic. We reported earlier this week that Apple and Broadcom have entered into a multi-year partnership, one that would see Apple secure advanced components, including wireless and Radio Frequency (RF) components for its own baseband chips (C1, C1X, and C2) to enable cellular, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth connectivity on devices. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman had also speculated at the time that the deal likely had to do something with Apple's long-rumored Baltra ASIC.

We’re proud to expand our work with Broadcom with a new agreement to produce billions more chips in the US! It's our largest ever American Manufacturing Program commitment and an important step in our work to build an end-to-end silicon supply chain in the US.

— Tim Cook (@tim_cook) July 8, 2026

Well, just a few days later, Apple has officially confirmed the deal, with Tim Cook going on to crow that the tie-up constitutes Apple's "largest ever American Manufacturing Program commitment and an important step in our work to build an end-to-end silicon supply chain in the US."

Critically, Apple's accompanying press release has pegged a $30 billion price tag on the deal that now runs till 2031, "and will lead to the production of more than 15 billion U.S.-made chips and support hundreds of American jobs."

Apple's allusion to billions of US-made chips is very significant here, especially as the iPhone maker has now earmarked $1.5 billion for helping Broadcom expand its Colorado-based facilities. This comes amid rampant speculation since 2024 that Apple was working with Broadcom on its first AI server chip, which bears the internal codename "Baltra." Some reports at the time also suggested that the chip would leverage TSMC's 3nm 'N3E' process, and that the design process would conclude over the coming 12-month period.

According to the Information, The chip itself could sport various chiplets, with each of them designed for a specific function. Apple could later combine each of these chiplets into a single unit, with Broadcom possibly included to help with how each of these processors communicates with each other when simultaneously running in Apple Intelligence servers. This siloed approach would allow Apple to keep the overall design of the AI ASIC hidden even from its partners like Broadcom.

As for the actual servers, we previously reported that Foxconn has been tasked to produce them, with Apple’s assembling partner slated to receive some assistance from Lenovo and its subsidiary when it comes to the overall design.

Now that Apple has formally acknowledged its homegrown chip effort, it is only a matter of time until we get more details on the Baltra ASIC.

As a final point, do note that Apple's 15 billion chips figure might also include some iPhone and Mac chips that it intends to outsource to Intel. As we've been noting ad nauseum here, Apple is likely to leverage Intel's 18A-P process for the base M7 chips that are expected to ship in 2027. What's more, the Cupertino-based tech giant is now expected to fabricate its 2028-launching A22 chip either on Intel's 18A-P process or the more advanced 14A one, with around 80 percent of Apple's planned orders with Intel reportedly pertaining to this iPhone-geared chip.

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