[News] 2nm Race Drives 300mm Fab Spending to $107B in 2025; SEMI Forecasts $374B Through 2028

With semiconductor giants gearing up for 2nm-class mass production, SEMI, announced in its press release that worldwide spending on 300mm wafer fab equipment is set to exceed $100 billion for the first time in 2025, rising 7% to $107 billion. Meanwhile, investment in 300mm wafer fab equipment is projected to total US$374 billion from 2026 to 2028, SEMI reports.

The Elec, citing SEMI CEO Ajit Manocha during the SEMICON West in Phoenix, Arizona, points out the chip industry is at a pivotal moment, driven by surging AI demand and a growing push for regional manufacturing. Manocha reportedly added that the global rollout of 300mm fabs will be crucial in supporting the growth of data centers, edge computing devices, and the broader digital economy.

According to SEMI, spending on 300mm wafer fabs is projected to hit US$107 billion in 2025, rising to US$116 billion in 2026 and US$120 billion in 2027, before reaching US$138 billion in 2028.

SEMI highlights that a major growth driver will be investment in logic and microchips, fueled by 2-nanometer-class and smaller nodes, along with cutting-edge technologies like gate-all-around transistors and backside power delivery. The industry body also forecasts that 1.4-nanometer chip production could kick off between 2028 and 2029.

In line with SEMI’s observation, foundry leaders are progressing steadily on their 2nm-class nodes. While TSMC targets mass production by year-end, Intel unveiled its Panther Lake processor on the 18A node on October 9. At the ITT keynote, the company noted that 18A has reached its lowest defect density yet, with volume production on track for Q4, Wccftech reports.

On the other hand, SEMI notes the memory segment is set to rank second in spending over the next three years, with a total of $136 billion, signaling the start of a new growth cycle. According to SEMI, DRAM-related equipment investment is expected to surpass $79 billion from 2026 to 2028, while 3D NAND spending is projected to reach $56 billion during the same period.

As per SEMI, regionally, China is set to lead spending at US$94 billion from 2026 to 2028, followed by South Korea with US$86 billion and Taiwan at US$75 billion. The U.S. is projected to invest US$60 billion over the same period.

(Photo credit: Intel)