AMD CEO Lisa Su: Chips made at TSMC’s U.S. facility are priced 5–20% higher than those produced in Taiwan.

AMD CEO Lisa Su: Chips made at TSMC’s U.S. facility are priced 5–20% higher than those produced in Taiwan.

Taipei, July 2, 2025 — Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) has announced plans to accelerate the construction of its U.S. facilities, aiming to reduce the time gap between Taiwan and the U.S. chip production. This move is likely to impact the pricing of chips produced at TSMC’s U.S. facility, as reported by AMD CEO Lisa Su.

TSMC, the world’s largest semiconductor foundry, is working to build two plants in Arizona faster, a move that could bring more Apple chip production to Arizona quicker — but don't expect the newest chips. The TSMC facility in Phoenix, known as Fab 21, is the chip foundry's first factory in Arizona dedicated to chip production. However, while two others are under construction, TSMC plans to have them up and running sooner than first thought [1].

According to Nikkei, TSMC intends to speed up construction of the two sites considerably. The factories will be accelerated "by several quarters," TSMC claims, with the intention of bringing them online faster. TSMC says it is to meet the demand from U.S.-based customers for smartphone and AI computing chips. "After completion, around 30% of our 2-nanometer and more advanced [chip] capacity will be located in Arizona," said TSMC chairman and CEO CC Wei on Thursday. It will create "an independent, leading-edge semiconductor manufacturing cluster in the U.S." [1].

The acceleration of construction follows months after TSMC pledged a $100 billion investment in the United States. The investment, intended to take place over four years, was to be used to increase TSMC's manufacturing footprint in the country. TSMC had already made an initial investment in Arizona to the tune of $12 billion in 2020. It has also received a $6.6 billion package from the Biden administration as part of the CHIPS act. The latest high-value pledge will almost certainly be used in part to speed up the building of the facilities [1].

AMD CEO Lisa Su has reported that chips made at TSMC’s U.S. facility are priced 5–20% higher than those produced in Taiwan. The higher cost is due to the additional expenses involved in setting up and operating the U.S. facilities, which are still in the early stages of development. The increased pricing could affect AMD's cost structure and potentially impact its financial performance [2].

TSMC's acceleration of construction could bring the overall lag for U.S. production down to as few as three years, compared to the initial five years. However, the $100 billion investment won't necessarily allow the U.S. projects to catch up to Taiwan completely, but a few quarters closer is still a lot when it comes to manufacturing [1].

The U.S. iPhone chip dream is getting closer to reality with TSMC's accelerated construction. Apple, one of TSMC's biggest clients, could benefit from having its chips produced closer to home, although it is not expected to happen immediately. Until then, Apple has no choice but to accept that its chips have to be built in TSMC's more up-to-date facilities in Taiwan [1].

In conclusion, TSMC's efforts to speed up U.S. chip production are significant for the semiconductor industry. The impact on pricing, particularly for AMD and Apple, will be closely watched by investors and financial professionals. The acceleration of construction could have broader implications for the semiconductor supply chain and the broader technology industry.

References:
[1] https://appleinsider.com/articles/25/07/17/tsmc-us-chip-production-may-soon-only-be-three-years-behind-taiwan
[2] https://www.patentlyapple.com/2025/07/although-tsmc-plans-to-begin-mass-production-of-2-nanometer-products-in-the-second-half-2025-apple-wont-adopt-it-until-20.html