Japanese firm wants to leapfrog from producing 45nm chips to 2nm chips by 2027
IBM produced the first chip made using the 2nm process node back in 2021
Since orders from Japanese companies alone won’t help Rapidus generate the revenue it needs, the company will have to grab orders from top tech names like Apple, Google and Meta according to Atsuyoshi Koike, chief executive of Rapidus who said, “We are looking for a U.S. partner, and we have begun discussions with some GAFAM [Google, Apple, Facebook, Amazon and Microsoft] corporations. Specifically, there is demand [for chips] from data centers [and] right now, TSMC is the only company that can make the semiconductors they envision. That is where Rapidus will enter.”
Rapidus plans on building its 2nm fab in Japan which might give it an advantage over TSMC
Rapidus is planning on building its 2nm foundry in Chitose on the Hokkaido island of Japan. The company could get 2nm business if China starts making more noise about invading Taiwan; looking to become self-sufficient in the semiconductor industry, some analysts believe that the Chinese could attack Taiwan with the takeover of TSMC in mind. Moving chip production to Japan could remove some of the worry that some tech executives have about where the majority of their chips are made.
