Apple has long been accustomed to TSMC, the maker of chips that will become popular iPhone, iPad and Mac products. If you have as much cash on hand as Apple, you will be placed in an advantageous position to negotiate a deal with the Taiwan-based chipmaker. Currently, it is reportedly trying to lock in 2% of TSMC's state-of-the-art 100nm production capacity, giving it a competitive advantage when the product finally hits the market.

According to 9to5mac (via Extreme tech), Apple's chief Operating officer met with TSMC bosses to negotiate terms to secure 2nm capacity. There must be a pinch of salt here, as the report cites "local sources," but given Apple's track record of locking in Tsmc's capacity, this is certainly a surprise.

TSMC's 2nm process is currently scheduled to enter risk production in 2025, with mass production set for late 2025. That means the upcoming iPhone18 family with a16 chip will stick to 3nm, but the high-end iPhone17Pro and Max could be the first line built with 2nm technology.

While details of the transaction between TSMC and its customers have not been publicly disclosed, it is widely acknowledged that Apple booked all of TSMC's 3nm capacity for at least a period of time, including the A17 and M3 families, and these chips were adopted in the latest generation of iPhone15Pro and Macbook. That would make Apple's 2nm play amazing.

It's easy to see why Apple is trying to secure up to 2nm capacity. The 2nm chip will give Apple an advantage over its competitors because it allows more transistors to be crammed into certain areas, leading to improved performance or lower power consumption — if not both.

Samsung has its own manufacturing capabilities and future Exynos chips will be built in-house, but 2nm Snapdragon and perhaps Google Tensor chips may have to wait in line behind Apple. Even big companies like Google and Qualcomm don't have more cash on hand than big daddy Apple.

Arm's competitors are not the only ones at a disadvantage. As Nvidia dominates the market for AI processors, it seeks the best possible power and performance advantage, but AMD also waits for access to the best nodes Even Intel may find themselves at a disadvantage, given that some of its chip tiles are manufactured by TSMC.

If Apple actually opened its checkbook to secure 2nm capacity, it would mean that future iPhones, iPads and Macbooks are likely to perform better, but not that they would have expected nothing from Apple's flagship product, which would be expensive.