Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., Ltd. (TSMC), the largest chip contract manufacturer in the world, said Thursday (May 21) it was not worried about its lead position in the production of 5-nanometer chips after South Korean rival Samsung announced renewed efforts.

While TSMC said it did not comment on any situation involving competitors, it added it was confident it would continue to be the leading force in the chip manufacturing technology, UDN reported. Samsung announced it expected to begin mass production of its sophisticated 5-nm chips during the second half of 2021, while TSMC started during the first quarter of this year.

Clients for the Taiwan company's product already include Apple, Qualcomm, Advanced Micro Devices and HiSilicon. The monthly production capacity is likely to rise from the current 50,000 to 80,000 by the end of the year, according to the UDN report.

Despite the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, TSMC increased its capital expenditure. This demonstrated it was planning to hold on to its lead and extend it to cover 3-nm semiconductors, experts said.

© Pakistan Press International, source Asianet-Pakistan