China has long been the preferred location for tech companies to establish their supply chains. However, in recent years, the decline in population dividends has led to rising labor costs, and the need for tech companies to mitigate the impact of geopolitical risks has prompted them to accelerate the relocation of supply chains out of China, with some shifting production capacity to Southeast Asia and South Asia.

Recently, as per a report from TechNews citing sources, it’s indicated that HP is considering moving more than half of its personal computer production away from China to countries like Thailand and Vietnam.

This move is primarily aimed at significantly reducing its reliance on China’s supply chain, as well as addressing global trade dynamics and the need to lower costs.

In addition to HP, several well-known tech companies are also shifting their supply chains to Southeast Asian and South Asian countries.

• Apple

One notable example of supply chain relocation is Apple. Having long relied on China’s supply chain, Apple is now finding that the era of full dependence on China is coming to an end due to political and commercial pressures.

iPhone

As one of Apple’s most important products, iPhone has been a key focus in this shift.

Although supply chain diversification was always part of Apple’s strategy, the plan has been accelerated following a series of disruptions at Foxconn’s Zhengzhou plant during the pandemic. These events have compelled Apple to expedite its efforts to diversify its supply chain.

According to a report from Business Standard, since April of this year, Apple has assembled iPhones worth USD 14 billion in India, with 14% of iPhones now being manufactured there.

Rajeev Chandrasekhar, India’s former Union Minister of State for Electronics and Information Technology, also stated on the X platform that by 2028, it is estimated that up to 25% of iPhones will be made in India.

iPad

In addition to iPhone, Apple has also started shifting part of its iPad production to Vietnam. Foxconn is responsible for manufacturing iPads in Vietnam, where mass production and shipments are already underway.

MacBook

Similarly, the MacBook production line has been partially moved out of China and relocated to Vietnam, which is primarily produced by Quanta and Foxconn in their Vietnamese facilities.

Earlier rumors cited by Nikkei have suggested that Apple was considering shifting some of its production to Thailand as well. However, Thailand’s supply chain for key components is not yet fully developed, with many parts still reliant on imports from China.

The associated transportation costs and the risk of potential damage during transit have led Apple to prioritize setting up production lines in Vietnam first.

Nevertheless, Thailand’s strong electronics manufacturing infrastructure and cost advantages make it a potential future production site for Apple.

On August 13, Google officially released the Pixel 9 series of smartphones, featuring Google’s latest self-developed Tensor G4 processor and advanced AI function supported by Gemini AI.

Google Pixel 9 series includes three full-screen smartphones: Pixel 9, Pixel 9 Pro, and Pixel 9 Pro XL, as well as a foldable smartphone, the Pixel 9 Pro Fold.

Both Pixel 9 and Pixel 9 Pro are equipped with 6.3-inch screens, with the Pixel 9 Pro using a better LTPO screen; Pixel 9 Pro XL is fitted with a 6.8-inch screen; Pixel 9 Pro Fold’s internal screen size increased from 7.6 inches to 8 inches, and the external display screen size from 5.8 inches to 6.3 inches.

The base memory capacity of the new phones is up to 12GB, with the two Pro models and the Pixel 9 Pro Fold offering 16GB of memory.

It is learned that the Tensor G4 adopted in Google’s new phones is based on Samsung’s 4nm process (4LPP+), boasting a 3.1GHz Arm Cortex-X4 super core, three 2.6GHz Arm Cortex-A720 large cores, and four 1.92GHz Arm Cortex-A520 small cores.

Moreover, Tensor G4 is equipped with the new Samsung Exynos Modem 5400 baseband chip (Outside the processor), supporting 4G/5G, WiFi-7, Bluetooth 5.x, and satellite connectivity. The memory used is LPDDR5X, and media decoding supports formats such as H.264, H.265, VP9, and AV1.

Read more

• [News] Google’s Tensor G5 Reportedly Manufactured with TSMC’s 3nm and InFO-POP Packaging
• [News] Google Reportedly Shifts Orders from Samsung to TSMC for Its Upcoming Tensor G5 in the Pixel 10 Series

(Photo credit: Google)

Google has accelerate its pace on the Pixel series, as the tech giant launched Google Pixel 9 on August 13th, which is two months ahead of its schedule.

Though the Tensor G4 processor in the model is manufactured with Samsung’s 4nm, according to a report citing sources by Commercial Times, Google is said to be switching to TSMC’s 3nm process with its next-generation Tensor G5, coupling with the foundry giant’s InFO-POP packaging.

Google’s Pixel 8 is said to be the first AI-centric smartphone, featuring a range of AI functionalities. Yet, Commercial Times’ report has indicated that, after years of close collaboration, Google will part ways with Samsung and have TSMC produce the Tensor G5 chip.

The chip is also said to adopt TSMC’s advanced InFO-POP packaging. Google’s move, according to the report, demonstrates its ambition to expand its leadership in software to hardware, as it eyes for the opportunities of edge AI.

Industry sources cited by the report further point out that in the fourth quarter, both Qualcomm and MediaTek will launch flagship-level chips, while Apple’s A18 will also be produced using TSMC’s N3 process.

All these developments have hinted at tech giants’ ambition on the massive potential of the edge AI market. Now, Google would be the latest competitor to join the race.

Meanwhile, though Pixel’s market share is relatively low, the Android ecosystem, with its 70% market share in smartphones and billions of users, offers significant potential. Google is said to be following a path similar to Apple’s, achieving complete integration of hardware and software to maximize this potential.

Google’s self-developed chip extends beyond mobile devices, with its TPU (Tensor Processing Unit) now in their seventh generation. Additionally, Google’s Arm-based CPUs are being developed in partnership with TSMC.

Read more

• [News] Breaking Apple’s Monopoly – TSMC’s InFO Packaging Reportedly Adds Google Chips
• [News] TSMC Pushes for FOPLP Mass Production by 2027, Reportedly Eyeing on Innolux’s Plant

(Photo credit: Google)

As September draws closer and iPhone 16’s release date is nearing, suppliers have been ramping up their production of iPhone 16 OLED panels in preparation. According to the reports by ETNews and MacRumors, Samsung Display and LG Display started initial production of iPhone 16 OLED panels as early as in June, and have substantially boosted production over the past month.

ETnews notes that Apple is forecasting shipments of approximately 90 million iPhone 16 units this year, while the production of OLED panels is estimated to be around 30% higher, totaling about 120 million units.

Among them, Samsung is said to have the lion’s share by supplying around 80 million OLED panels by the end of this year, while LGD is projected to provide approximately 43 million panels, according to ETnews. Both companies are on track to meet these production targets.

The reports states that the iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro, and iPhone 16 Pro Max will have a design similar to the iPhone 15 models, but Apple is increasing the sizes of the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max.

The iPhone 16 Pro will feature a 6.3-inch display, up from 6.1 inches, while the iPhone 16 Pro Max will have a 6.9-inch display, an increase from 6.7 inches. The display sizes for the standard iPhone 16 models will remain unchanged, with the iPhone 16 maintaining a 6.1-inch display and the iPhone 16 Plus featuring a 6.7-inch display.

Earlier in May, both LG Display and Samsung Display secured orders for OLED panels for Apple’s iPhone 16 Pro, according to a previous report from The Elec. Subsequently, LG Display also has acquired orders for iPhone 16 Pro Max panels.

It seems that Apple tends to release more OLED orders to LGD and counts on it to be a solid second supplier. Another report by The Elec reveals that Apple is likely to use LGD as the second supplier for the OLED screens of next year’s iPhone SE 4. The iPhone SE series is Apple’s budget-friendly option, traditionally sourcing screens exclusively from the Chinese manufacturer BOE.

Read more

• [News] Apple May Choose LGD as Second Supplier for iPhone SE 4 OLED
• [News] Fuelled by AI Features, Apple’s iPhone 16 Shipments Reportedly to Increase by 10%

(Photo credit Apple)

TSMC’s fan-out (InFO) packaging process will no longer be exclusively used by Apple. According to a report from Commercial Times, it’s revealed that Google’s self-developed Tensor chips for their phones will switch to TSMC’s 3nm process next year and will also start using InFO packaging.

TSMC developed InFO packaging based on FOWLP (fan-out wafer-level packaging), which gained prominence after being adopted by the A10 processor in the iPhone 7 in 2016.

TSMC indicated that the current InFO_PoP technology has advanced to its ninth generation. Last year, it successfully certified 3nm chips, achieving higher efficiency and lower power consumption for mobile devices. The InFO_PoP technology, which features a backside redistribution layer (RDL), has entered mass production this year.

According to industry sources cited by the Commercial Times, Google will shift to TSMC for the Tensor G5 chips, which will be used in the Pixel 10 series next year. These chips will not only utilize the 3nm process but will also adopt integrated fan-out packaging.

This year’s Tensor G4 chips, set to be announced soon, use Samsung’s FOPLP (fan-out panel-level packaging). Although wafer-level packaging (WLP) is generally considered to have advantages over panel-level packaging (PLP), FOWLP still prevails at this stage due to yield and cost considerations.

TSMC has also begun developing FOPLP technology. Previously, per sources cited by a report from MoneyDJ, TSMC has officially formed a team, currently in the “Pathfinding” phase, and is planning to establish a mini line with a clear goal of advancing beyond traditional methods.

Although it is not expected to mature within the next three years, major customers like NVIDIA have partnered with foundry companies to develop new materials. One of TSMC’s major clients has already provided specifications for using glass materials.

Traditionally, chip advancements have been achieved through more advanced process nodes. However, new materials could enable the integration of more transistors on a single chip, achieving the same goal of scaling.

For instance, Intel plans to use glass substrates by 2030, potentially allowing a single chip to house one trillion transistors – 50 times the number in Apple’s A17 Pro processor. This suggests that glass substrates could become a significant milestone in chip development.

Another sources cited by Commercial Times have also indicated that glass substrates are part of the medium- to long-term technological roadmap. They can address challenges in large-size, high-density interconnect substrate development.

Currently, this technology is in the early stages of research and development. Its impact on ABF (Ajinomoto Build-up Film) substrates is expected to become significant in the second half of 2027 or later.

Read more

• [News] TSMC Pushes for FOPLP Mass Production by 2027, Reportedly Eyeing on Innolux’s Plant
• [News] TSMC Reportedly Forms a Team on FOPLP Development, with Mini Line on the Road

(Photo credit: TSMC)