An employee of Apple chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) has been charged with stealing secrets from the company, and trying to take these to a new job in China.
It’s just the latest in a string of examples of attempted industrial espionage that highlights the dark side of the rush to win orders from companies like Apple.
TSMC has produced every iPhone processor for several years, and is reportedly going to continue to be Apple’s sole source for chips.
Apple generally prefers to get components from multiple sources, but apparently no company — not even Samsung or Intel — can compete with TSMC. That makes the two companies very dependent on each other.
After being knocked out of commission over the weekend by a computer virus, iPhone chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) was back up and running on Monday.
According to the manufacturer, the problem was caused by a ransomware attack from the infamous WannaCry ransomware cryptoworm. This ransomware attack first struck in May 2017, requiring victims to pay a bitcoin ransom in order to decrypt their files.
A computer virus infected the fabrication tools and computers at TSMC’s factories that are likely producing Apple’s next-generation iPhone processors.
The company is still cleaning the malware off its equipment, but expects to be finished by tomorrow.
The iPhone is made in China, so most of the profit stays over there, right? Actually, everything in that sentence is wrong.
A new study finds that China makes less than $9 from each iPhone 7. Some of the rest goes to other Asian countries, but the lion’s share is earned by Apple and other U.S. companies.
Samsung has long been a crucial part of Apple’s supply chain, but it wants to muscle in on the company’s A-series processor orders as well.
According to a new report, Samsung is looking to regain the A-series orders that it received from Apple until TSMC took over several years ago. Previously Samsung held the exclusive order contract for these mobile A-series chips, which are used to power the iPhone and iPad.
Apple supplier TSMC will reportedly invest a massive $25 billion in 5 nanometer node technology in its quest to fabricate next-generation chips which could help power iOS devices.
No timeframe was announced for the investment. Since the company is supposedly currently fabricating 7nm chips for the 2018 iPhone, this will hopefully help TSMC hold onto its status as Apple’s A-series chipmaker for at least a while longer.
The Apple A12 processor, the heart of the 2018 iPhone, is reportedly already being manufactured. It’s being produced by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., which has made Apple’s chips for years.
Even though the next iPhone isn’t expected until fall, TSMC isn’t getting a head start. It takes about three months to convert silicon into a microprocessor.
iPhone component orders for Apple’s suppliers aren’t likely to pick up until the third quarter of this year, a new report suggests.
It’s just the latest bit of bad news in a series of recent reports suggesting that Apple is slashing orders for its present generation iPhones, and may be leaving manufacturers with excess inventory.
Apple shares fell 3 percent this morning after iPhone chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSMC) cut its revenue forecast for the second quarter of 2018.
The company and industry analysts point to weak demand for high-end smartphones as the main reason for the poor guidance. This likely has something to do with the fact that iPhone X sales have been in the gutter since early hype quickly died out late last year.
