CMOS Processes Chinese Order Supports Samsung's 2-Nanometer Plans

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Samsung has received urgently needed large orders for its 2-nanometer chips. Two Chinese manufacturers of crypto-mining equipment have committed to purchasing chips worth $480 million annually, reports the newspaper "Korea Economic Daily."

So far, the technology giant Samsung lacked commitments from customers for products from its in-house 2-nm process, but apparently, that has now changed. Two interested companies have been found in China. The purchases by the new customers—MicroBT and Canaan—are described as "rain after a long drought" for Samsung's chip business, comments the technology blog ibaiwin.

The company had made a risky bet on the two-nanometer business after losing both Qualcomm and later Nvidia as customers due to technical issues with its 3-nm chips. The large orders from China offer an opportunity to scale up the production of this most advanced chip generation again.

Worldwide, only three companies are currently capable of manufacturing 2-nanometer chips: TSMC, Samsung, and Intel. Of the three, only the Taiwanese manufacturer TSMC has managed to make this business profitable. In Japan and elsewhere, there are efforts to rejoin the top tier of semiconductor manufacturing, but the investment costs and technical challenges are immense.

TSMC As Usual in the Lead

TSMC currently holds a 70.2 percent share of the global foundry business, according to second-quarter revenues. For Samsung, it's just 7.3 percent. Against the backdrop of this global race, the performance metrics for Samsung's 2-nm processes have been closely watched in the industry.

The South Korean chip manufacturer announced specific figures for these new processes for the first time in mid-November 2025. Its new 2-nm GAA chips offer up to five percent higher performance, up to eight percent better energy efficiency, and a five percent reduced footprint compared to the 3-nm GAA chips, Samsung stated.

Although this is seen by analysts as "merely a moderate upgrade," it could be crucial for Samsung's planned comeback in the chip industry. Only if the performance is right and the production yield rates improve in the long term will Samsung be able to win more international customers again.

Intel on the Hunt for Skilled Workers

Intel is also striving to build its own high-performance chips again. In addition to sufficient funding, hiring suitable "talents" is crucial. The Liberty Times in Taiwan recently reported that Wei-Jen Lo, a senior VP at TSMC, was poached by Intel and would be joining the "Team Blue" in the USA at the end of October.

TSMC dominates the global semiconductor contract manufacturing business by a wide margin. As a result, an ecosystem of research and education, suppliers of all kinds, and mass production has developed in Taiwan over several decades. Nowhere else is there such a large labor market, and nowhere else are there so many experts for all phases of chip manufacturing as in Taiwan.

Japan Under Pressure

This is a challenge that Japan, among others, is also facing. The government in Tokyo, through the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI), has invested in Rapidus, a chip manufacturer with ambitions in the 2-nanometer segment. Reportedly, they aim to begin mass production there by 2027. However, over the past decades, as Japan gradually lost its technological leadership in semiconductor manufacturing, the corresponding talent pool has also diminished.

This is now not only a critical bottleneck for Rapidus but also for TSMC, which, under pressure from the Japanese government, has opened a factory in Kumamoto in collaboration with Sony for the production of legacy chips. Additionally, another factory for 6-nm chips is currently being built elsewhere in Japan.

That even Samsung has to be grateful to Chinese manufacturers of machines for crypto mining should be understood as a warning to techno-nationalists worldwide. It is not easy to establish a financially sustainable production of 2-nm processes "and beyond" in a short time. Even Samsung is struggling with it. (sb)

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