TSMC Awarded $6.6 Bln in CHIPS Act Grant and $5 bln in Loans to Incentivise A16 Technology Production
The Biden-Harris Administration has awarded TSMC Arizona up to $6.6 billion in direct funding and up to $5 billion in proposed loans under the CHIPS Incentives Program to strengthen U.S. leadership in advanced semiconductor technology. This funding supports TSMC’s $65 billion investment in building three state-of-the-art semiconductor fabs in Phoenix, Arizona, marking the largest foreign direct investment in a greenfield project in U.S. history. The project is expected to generate over 20,000 jobs and secure domestic production of leading-edge chips used in AI, autonomous vehicles, and high-performance computing.
The press release said the CHIPS Investment Incentivizes the creation of a leading-edge cluster in Phoenix, Arizona, and Over 20,000 Jobs; and Includes a commitment to produce A16 technology. TSMC A16™ technology, which targets production in 2H 2026 (probably producing A16 first in Arizona instead of Taiwan is the string attached?), is the next nanosheet-based technology featuring Super Power Rail, or SPR.
A16 is best suited for HPC products with complex signal routes and dense power delivery networks, as they can benefit the most from backside power delivery. Compared with N2P (2nm), A16 offers 8%~10% speed improvement at the same Vdd, 15%~20% power reduction at the same speed, and 1.07~1.10X chip density.
President Joe Biden emphasized the transformative impact of the CHIPS & Science Act in revitalizing U.S. semiconductor manufacturing, with TSMC’s Arizona facilities set to begin operations early next year. U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo highlighted the role of this investment in bolstering America’s economic and national security. TSMC Chairman Dr. C.C. Wei stated that the agreement accelerates the development of cutting-edge semiconductor technology in the U.S., underscoring a key milestone in strengthening the domestic semiconductor ecosystem.
“The first of TSMC’s three facilities is on track to fully open early next year, which means that for the first time in decades, an American manufacturing plant will be producing the leading-edge chips used in our most advanced technologies – from our smartphones, to autonomous vehicles, to the data centers powering artificial intelligence,” said President Biden.
Great TSMC.