Apple no longer sits alone at the front of the line for the world’s most advanced chips. Rising demand from artificial intelligence companies has reshaped priorities at Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., forcing Apple to compete more directly for capacity that once felt assured.
Apple’s Changing Position at TSMC
For more than a decade, Apple played a central role in Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. expansion plans. Apple Silicon helped justify massive investments in cutting-edge manufacturing. That dynamic has shifted.
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According to a detailed report by semiconductor analyst Tim Culpan, Apple no longer receives automatic priority at the most advanced process nodes. Instead, it now competes head-to-head with AI-focused customers such as Nvidia and AMD.
AI accelerators consume far more wafer area than smartphone system-on-chips. Even a limited number of AI customers can absorb a large share of TSMC’s advanced output. As a result, Apple’s designs no longer dominate allocation decisions across TSMC’s many fabrication plants.
This shift shows up in revenue trends. NVIDIA likely surpassed Apple as TSMC’s largest customer by revenue in the first half of 2025, although exact rankings remain unclear. Apple also stopped being the primary driver of TSMC’s revenue growth around five years ago.
Apple is unlikely to face outright chip shortages that delay product launches. Still, competition with AI companies willing to pay premiums creates a new problem. Advanced silicon may cost more over time.
That pricing pressure could influence Apple’s margins or future product pricing strategies. The impact will unfold gradually, but the balance of power at TSMC has already changed. Apple now shares the spotlight with AI.
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