Nvidia may be much bigger than AMD, but AMD can deliver similar performance on a significantly lower budget. So the latter may be a more reasonable choice if you’re trying to keep your construction costs under control. Does manufacturing location play a role in pricing? Well, the affordability of Ryzen products has nothing to do with manufacturing. Rather, this is a strategic move on AMD’s part, as the company is pretty much focused on delivering more performance per dollar.
All AMD processors come from the country that produces the most computer chips: Taiwan. More specifically, the manufacturer of AMD chips is Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, or TSMC, for short. This company is the largest semiconductor producer in the world, and shows no signs of slowing down – so much so that it also has manufacturing facilities in Arizona, which will likely avoid any import issues with Washington. In fact, this is where AMD has decided to produce some of its AI chips which are around 20% more expensive than products made in Taiwan.
For AMD processors, the story doesn’t end there. After production, AMD takes the chips, applies the silicon chip, tests everything and finally assembles the processor, probably at its TF-AMD Microelectronics factory in Penang, Malaysia. However, some processors are also assembled and packaged in China, which is not surprising given that AMD has a multitude of locations in the country.
What else does TSMC make?
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There is no cost reduction, and while the Taiwan label seems like a red flag, it really isn’t. TSMC also makes chips for Nvidia. The deeper you dig, the similarities between these two competitors only become more pronounced. Like AMD, Nvidia also spreads the rest of its manufacturing across different sites. So if you’re on AMD’s radar just because it assembles its products overseas, you’re getting pretty much the same thing with Nvidia.
TSMC is particularly interesting because it connects various companies together. As the largest independent semiconductor manufacturer, it produces chips for AMD and Nvidia, as well as Apple and Tesla. TSMC also makes the lion’s share of its revenue from producing chips for 5G smartphones and many smart devices. If you have any technology at home, there’s a 99.9% chance that something is coming from TSMC’s Taiwanese factory.
Right now, memory and chips are in high demand (an understatement of the century). So it might be a good idea to get a processor now before prices rise again. TSMC has made billions from the AI explosion so far, and given that a handful of companies control the manufacturing of chips, processors, and GPUs, no one can say when the next price hike will happen or how big it will be.
