One advantage of Samsung’s foundry business was that it was much easier for local companies to place orders for either cutting-edge or mature nodes. Unfortunately, another blow has been dealt to the company given that the wafer-manufacturing giant has been struggling to get any kind of momentum going while also failing to attract customers due to consistent setbacks faced with its 3nm GAA process thanks to unstable yields. The latest report states that one South Korean firm has now shifted to TSMC as it aims to gravitate towards more advanced packaging.
Furiosa AI has stopped placing orders with Samsung and will use TSMC’s 5nm technology to mass produce its second-generation ‘Renegade’ silicon this year
Previously, the Furiosa AI first-generation ‘Warboy’ chip was released in 2023 and mass produced on Samsung’s 14nm process. However, Commercial Times reports that the same company has now shifted to TSMC, where it uses the Taiwanese semiconductor behemoth’s older but mature 5nm process to fabricate the second-generation ‘Renegade’ chip that is expected to enter mass production in 2025.
The report states that amongst Korean AI firms, it will be the first to leverage TSMC’s advanced CoWoS 2.5D packaging. While it is just ‘business as usual’ for TSMC, Samsung continues to bear losses, as another South Korean IC design company, DeepX, which used to place orders with its local foundry partner, has moved to TSMC for its DX-V3 chip, which is said to use the latter’s 12nm node. Mobilint is also said to transfer its latest AI silicon to TSMC’s plants while taking advantage of the same 12nm process.
Samsung was already reported on multiple occasions to be struggling with its advanced node, but to see companies that had once placed their faith in a local partner now finding an alternative is definitely a heartbreaking scenario. The report does not confirm why these companies formed a business relationship with TSMC, but it likely has to do with Samsung’s incessant struggles in the foundry sector. We certainly hope to see a comeback in the coming months, or else more South Korean entities will place their stock elsewhere.
News Source: Commercial Times
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