Prime Highlights
- AMD CEO Lisa Su attests that U.S.-made chips are 5–20% more expensive than Taiwanese chips.
- The premium price is positioned as a strategic investment in supply-chain security and stability.
Key Fact
- TSMC chips produced in its Arizona fab carry a premium of greater than 5% but less than 20%.
- AMD is waiting for its first U.S.-made chips by late 2025, with production already committed until 2027.
Key Background
AMD CEO Lisa Su explained that chips made in TSMC’s Arizona plant come with a cost premium of 5% to 20% over those made in Taiwan. Speaking at an AI conference in Washington, D.C., she underscored that making locally adds cost but stability and resilience in the supply chain are worth it.
Su emphasized that recent global semiconductor supply disruptions have illustrated the necessity of stronger, regionally based production. She said that emphasizing supply-chain resiliency ahead of naive cost-saving is essential to facilitating business resilience and national security in the new technology environment.
TSMC’s Arizona plant is already producing chips on the cutting-edge 4nm node, with yield on par with Taiwan plants. Although it is more expensive, the demand has been good, with capacity booked through 2027. AMD will start receiving its first chips produced domestically from as early as late 2025, underlining the strategic significance of this shift in domestic production.
AMD is among several top tech firms in utilizing United States-domestic semiconductor manufacturing as part of a broader industry trend spurred by the CHIPS Act. The trend has the aim of reducing reliance on Asian fabs and acquiring high-end chip supplies in the face of increased geopolitical tensions. For AMD, the cost disparity is not an obstacle but a doorway to enhancing long-term supply security and innovation.
