According to DigiTimes, TSMC’s 3nm process capacity has entered an extremely rare state of “overload,” as a fierce battle for capacity sweeps across the entire semiconductor supply chain. The report notes that from leading GPU and CPU designers to hyperscale cloud providers such as Amazon and Microsoft, nearly every major player is scrambling to secure orders from TSMC. However, the foundry’s manufacturing capability has now become the industry’s biggest bottleneck, with actual capacity falling far short of absorbing the massive surge in demand.
This severe supply-demand imbalance is already disrupting the product roadmaps of multiple companies. The industry is no longer facing just soaring costs caused by shortages. Without sufficient 3nm capacity backing, companies are even reluctant to take on downstream customer orders. Capacity allocation and procurement battles have now overtaken technological development as the most pressing operational challenge for major chipmakers. [TechWeb, in Chinese]