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Apple is the largest TSMC customer. By difference. In 2021 26% of income From this manufacturer of Taiwanese semiconductors came from the signing of the apple, a figure much higher than 5.8% derived from its activity for Mediatek, which was then its second best client. All probability These numbers will barely varied In the following years. In any case, the narrow bond that these two companies have maintained has caused Apple to be a priority customer for TSMC. Those of Cupertino were the first to have access to the 3 nm lithographic node which is underway in TSMC plants in Taiwan. And Apple will have priority access, as expected, to the 2 nm lithographic node With GAA transistors (Gate-alall-around) in which TSMC will begin large -scale manufacturing for 2025. That of these two companies is a story full of complicities and alliances that have allowed both to be reinforced. However, everything was about to be very different. Intel tried to convince Apple The company led by Tim Cook began to develop its own SOC for its smartphones and tablets between 2009 and 2010. At that time Apple decided that Samsung, which is one of the three semiconductor manufacturers From the planet next to Intel and TSMC, be responsible for producing its chips. However, there was a problem: Samsung already was already one of the integrated circuit manufacturers that had some of the most advanced integration technologies, but it was also a direct competitor of Apple. This rivalry led Tim Cook to opt for other options, and one of them, presumably the most attractive, consisted of allying with TSMC and trusting that this Taiwanese company was responsible for manufacturing its semiconductors. However, this It was not the only option Cook had on the table. He also considered the possibility of working with Intel or Texas Instruments. The problem was that Intel had barely manufacturing chips for third parties, and, on the other hand, Texas Instruments integration technologies were not advanced enough. “Simply Intel does not know what to do to exercise as a chip factory for third parties” Despite all this, Paul Otellinithe general director of Intel at that time, met with Tim Cook in early 2011 with the purpose of convincing him that Intel was his best option. And it must have been very persuasive. In fact, the head of Apple decided to stop the commitment he had already reached with TSMC for two months with the purpose of evaluating Otellini’s proposal. Morris Changthe founder of TSMC, worried a lot when he learned that Tim Cook had temporarily stopped his commitment and decided to travel immediately to the US to meet with Apple’s general director. Chang has revealed during an interview with Acquired What happened during those negotiation days: “Intel’s general director approached Tim Cook and asked him to consider his company. At that time Intel was the main supplier of the Apple Mac line. I knew many of Intel’s clients in Taiwan, none of them liked it because Intel always acted as if they were the only ones who had microprocessors. Even if Intel tried to do business in good faith, he had a conflict of interest. “ However, Chang adds something else. “We have learned to attend all the requests of our clients. We always respond with courtesy, but Intel has never done that. All Intel clients in Taiwan who knew wanted to change the supplier,” recalls Morris Chang. Anyway, when the TSMC founder spoke with Tim Cook the latter had already made a decision. A decision that reassured the veteran Taiwanese engineer: “Simply Intel does not know what to do to exercise as a chip factory for third parties.” This is the phrase that, according to Morris Chang, Tim Cook said to let him know that Apple would seal his alliance with TSMC. The rest is history. Image | Asia Society | Flickr (Fortune Ceo Initiative, David Geller) More information | Acquired In Xataka | The new TSMC factory in the US has achieved something “impossible”: overcome the performance of Taiwan plants