iPhone 18's Advanced A20 Chip Packaging Gains Momentum at TSMC

Next year's iPhone 18 will use TSMC's next-generation 2-nanometer fabrication process in combination with an advanced new packaging method, and the world's leading pure-play foundry has reportedly already established a dedicated production line for Apple in anticipation of mass production in 2026.

Apple Silicon Teal Feature
According to previous reports, Apple's A20 chip in iPhone 18 models will switch from the previous InFo (Integrated Fan-Out) packaging to WMCM (Wafer-Level Multi-Chip Module) packaging. Technically, the differences between the two packaging methods are quite striking.

InFo allows integration of components, including memory, within the package but focuses more on single-die packaging where memory is typically attached to the main SoC (such as DRAM placed on top or near the CPU and GPU cores). It's optimized for reducing the size and improving the performance of individual chips.

WMCM, on the other hand, excels at integrating multiple chips within the same package (hence the "Multi-Chip Module" part). This method allows more complex systems, such as CPUs, GPUs, DRAM, and other custom accelerators (e.g., AI/ML chips) to be tightly integrated in one package. It provides greater flexibility in arranging different types of chips, stacking them vertically or placing them side by side, while also optimizing communication between them.

TSMC plans to start manufacturing 2nm chips in late 2025, and Apple is expected to be the first company to receive chips built on the new process. TSMC generally builds new fabs when it needs to increase production capacity to handle significant orders for chips, and TSMC is expanding in a major way for 2nm technology.

To serve its major client Apple, TSMC has established a dedicated production line at its Chiayi P1 fab, where WMCM packaging monthly capacity is expected to reach 10,000 units by 2026, reports DigiTimes. According to Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, only "Pro" models in the iPhone 18 series are likely to use TSMC's next-generation 2nm processor technology because of cost concerns. Kuo also believes that the iPhone 18 Pro will feature 12GB of RAM as a result of the new packaging method.

Terms like "3nm" and "2nm" describe generations of chip manufacturing technology, each with its own set of design rules and architecture. As these numbers decrease, they generally indicate smaller transistor sizes. Smaller transistors allow more to be packed onto a single chip, typically resulting in increased processing speed and improved power efficiency.

Last year's iPhone 16 series is based on an A18 chip design built using a second-generation "N3E" 3nm process. Meanwhile, this year's upcoming iPhone 17 lineup is expected to use A19 chip technology that's likely built on an upgraded 3-nanometer process called "N3P." Compared to earlier versions of 3nm chips, the N3P chips offer increased performance efficiency and increased transistor density.

Related Roundup: iPhone 18
Related Forum: iPhone

Popular Stories

iOS 26 Feature

iOS 26.1 to iOS 26.4 Will Add These New Features to Your iPhone

Saturday October 18, 2025 11:00 am PDT by
iOS 26 was released last month, but the software train never stops, and iOS 26.1 beta testing is already underway. So far, iOS 26.1 makes both Apple Intelligence and Live Translation on compatible AirPods available in additional languages, and it includes some other minor changes across the Apple Music, Calendar, Photos, Clock, and Safari apps. More features and changes will follow in future ...
ios 26 1 liquid glass opaque

iOS 26.1 Beta 4 Lets Users Control Liquid Glass Transparency with New Toggle

Monday October 20, 2025 10:57 am PDT by
With the fourth betas of iOS 26.1, iPadOS 26.1, and macOS 26.1, Apple has introduced a new setting that's designed to allow users to customize the look of Liquid Glass. The toggle lets users select from a clear look for Liquid Glass, or a tinted look. Clear is the current Liquid Glass design, which is more transparent and shows the background underneath buttons, bars, and menus, while tinted ...
iPhone Siri Glow

Some Apple Employees Have 'Concerns' About iOS 26.4's Revamped Siri

Sunday October 19, 2025 7:39 am PDT by
iOS 26.4 is expected to introduce a revamped version of Siri powered by Apple Intelligence, but not everyone is satisfied with how well it works. In his Power On newsletter today, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said some of Apple's software engineers have "concerns" about the overhauled Siri's performance. However, he did not provide any specific details about the shortcomings. iOS 26.4 will...
iOS 26

iOS 26.0.2 Update for iPhones Coming Soon

Friday October 17, 2025 7:35 am PDT by
Apple's software engineers continue to internally test iOS 26.0.2, according to MacRumors logs, which have been a reliable indicator of upcoming iOS versions. iOS 26.0.2 will be a minor update that addresses bugs and/or security vulnerabilities, but we do not know any specific details yet. The update will likely be released by the end of next week. Last month, Apple released iOS 26.0.1,...
Apple iPad Pro hero M5

New iPad Pro Has Six Key Upgrades Beyond M5 Chip

Saturday October 18, 2025 10:57 am PDT by
While the new iPad Pro's headline feature is the M5 chip, the device has some other changes, including N1 and C1X chips, faster storage speeds, and more. With the M5 chip, the new iPad Pro has up to a 20% faster CPU and up to a 40% faster GPU compared to the previous model with the M4 chip, according to Geekbench 6 results. Keep in mind that 256GB and 512GB configurations have a 9-core CPU,...
maxresdefault

Here's How the iOS 26.1 Transparency Toggle Changes Liquid Glass

Monday October 20, 2025 1:55 pm PDT by
With the fourth beta of iOS 26.1, Apple added a toggle that makes Liquid Glass more opaque and reduces transparency. We tested the beta to see where the toggle works and what it looks like. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. If you have the latest iOS 26.1 beta, you can go to Settings > Display and Brightness to get to the new option. Tap on Liquid Glass, then...
HomePod mini and Apple TV

Apple's Next Rumored Products: New HomePod Mini, Apple TV, and More

Thursday October 16, 2025 9:13 am PDT by
Apple on Wednesday updated the 14-inch MacBook Pro, iPad Pro, and Vision Pro with its next-generation M5 chip, but previous rumors have indicated that the company still plans to announce at least a few additional products before the end of the year. The following Apple products have at one point been rumored to be updated in 2025, although it is unclear if the timeframe for any of them has...
iOS 26

What's New in iOS 26.1 Beta 4

Monday October 20, 2025 1:02 pm PDT by
Even though we're at the fourth beta of iOS 26.1, Apple is continuing to add new features. In fact, the fourth beta has some of the biggest changes that we'll get when iOS 26.1 releases to the public later this month. We've rounded up what's new below. Liquid Glass Transparency Toggle Apple added a toggle for customizing the look of Liquid Glass. In Settings > Display and Brightness,...
kohler toilet sensor

Kohler Launches $600 iPhone-Connected Toilet Camera That Monitors Your Health Through Waste Analysis

Monday October 20, 2025 1:42 pm PDT by
Kohler is expanding its line of bathroom products with Dekoda, an iPhone-connected device that's designed to be attached to a toilet rim (via The Verge). The device's included "sensors" point into the toilet bowl, allowing it to analyze what goes on in the bathroom. According to Kohler, Dekoda is a health tracker that can monitor gut health and hydration, as well as detect the presence of...

Top Rated Comments

bradman83 Avatar
17 weeks ago
More than being an advantage for the A20 chip, if WMCM is utilized for the M6 series in 2026 this could potentially be a gamechanger for Apple's desktop chips, as it provides an alternative to creating larger and more powerful workstation-grade chips than Apple's current approach of stitching two Max dies together. It would also allow Apple to do things with the regular chips that are impractical to do with monolithic dies, such as offer beefier GPUs or more memory.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
WarmWinterHat Avatar
17 weeks ago

Apple is a hardware company first and foremost
..when it comes to their software, it shows.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
anakin44011 Avatar
17 weeks ago

SoC is a failure for M series and now, they are using MCM at last.
This is about as bizarre of a comment as stating that Apple should have stayed with Intel. When my dreams turn into nightmares, I still hear the Intel MacBook Pro fans blowing at full speed every time I launch an app (yes, I have weird dreams).

Engineering is all about trade-offs...much like design, policy, and corporate strategy.

For all its faults...Apple has been killing it with its M chip strategy.

Do I wish there was an M4 Super-Extreme Ultimate Octo-Starkiller Edition? Sure. But the lack of one doesn't mean that their chip strategy hasn't been superb, far exceeding the needs of 95+% of its users.

Now, it seems that Apple can finally make its Super-Extreme Ultimate Octo-Starkiller Edition for the M6. I don't need one, but I might buy one just for the giggles and spits.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
socialwill Avatar
17 weeks ago
Whatever you may say about Apple, they have forced the tech industry to move forward. Kudos to them for what they have with chips and power efficiency.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
now i see it Avatar
17 weeks ago
so will this make safari snappier?
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
jlc1978 Avatar
17 weeks ago

More than being an advantage for the A20 chip, if WMCM is utilized for the M6 series in 2026 this could potentially be a gamechanger for Apple's desktop chips, as it provides an alternative to creating larger and more powerful workstation-grade chips than Apple's current approach of stitching two Max dies together. It would also allow Apple to do things with the regular chips that are impractical to do with monolithic dies, such as offer beefier GPUs or more memory.
It will be interesting to see the impact of using WMCM packaging across the A as well as M series of chips. While lower power consumption leading to longer battery life is nice, I suspect the battery life is more than adequate now for most users. If Apple does decide to use the tech to build workstation-grade chips, it will, as you suggest, be game changing, if the incorporate more powerful chips across teh entire M powered iPad and MacBook line. Keeping current battery life with much more powerful chips would be quite a feat. Besides the obvious advantages for gaming and power users; Apple could make AI actually useful the average user while maintaining privacy by doing everything on machine in terms of personal data. A spell checker could adapt to your writing style, such as if you use multiple languages; tech support for Apple supplied programs could be not only more robust but actually perform tasks beyond Siri. Spam filtering could be more robust as it gains info on typical spam messages or emails, especially ones that use very similar text but different phone numbers or email addresses.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)