Samsung's journey to 3nm chipset manufacturing continues, and the company will reportedly start producing 3nm GAA-based chipsets this week. However, the yield will be lower than initially expected, and the company's first 3nm chipset to enter production won't be destined for smartphones.
Instead, Samsung will use its 3nm GAA foundry process for PanSemi. The latter is a Chinese IC firm specializing in chips designed for Bitcoin mining. (via The Elec)
And contrary to previous industry rumors, Samsung's first 3nm GAA production run, which should take place later this week, won't have a high enough yield to qualify as ‘mass manufacturing.' Industry sources say this week's endeavor will be more like a 3nm GAA trial run rather than a full production run.
Qualcomm to use Samsung's 3nm foundry process after all?
PanSemi will be the first Samsung client to use, or at least trial-run, its 3nm foundry process, but it won't be the only one. Qualcomm also appears to be on the list of Samsung clients, which is interesting, given the former company's alleged stance on Samsung as a foundry partner.
In February 2022, Qualcomm decided to cut orders for 4nm chips from Samsung due to poor yield and reportedly informed the company that it won't require 3nm chips, giving the bulk of orders to TSMC instead.
But according to the recent report, Qualcomm may have had a change of heart. Although it may continue to lean on TSMC for most 3nm-based chipset orders, it now appears that Qualcomm also wants to secure 3nm orders from Samsung.
Sources claim that the US chipset company already made reservations for Samsung's 3nm foundry process. The companies have also reportedly agreed for Samsung to make its 3nm manufacturing process available to Qualcomm anytime the latter may need it.
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