The world's largest foundry (semiconductor contract manufacturing) company, Taiwan's TSMC, announced plans to begin semiconductor production using a 1.6nm (nanometer, one billionth of a meter) process in the second half of 2026.
On the 24th (local time), Y.J. Mii, Co-Chief Operating Officer (COO) of TSMC, stated at a technology conference held in Santa Clara, California, USA, "The new chip manufacturing technology called 'A16' will enter production in the second half of 2026."
COO Mii explained, "With A16 technology, power can be supplied from the back of the chip, which can increase the speed of artificial intelligence (AI) chips," adding, "It is a field where we are competing with Intel."
The global semiconductor competition over leadership in advanced process technology is expected to intensify. The 'A16' technology refers to the 1.6nm process. Previously, the US semiconductor company Intel mentioned a 1.8nm process, but this is the first time TSMC has revealed this process roadmap. Intel plans to start mass production of the 1.8nm process by the end of this year. TSMC has announced plans for production using 2nm in 2025 and 1.4nm in 2027. Samsung Electronics has similar plans for 2nm and 1.4nm processes as TSMC, but has never announced plans for a 1.6nm process.
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