TSMC’s Arizona campus covers approximately 2,000 acres. Image credit: Christopher Payne
As Apple seeks to relocate more chip production, TSMC is investing an additional $20 billion in its Arizona factories, even as Intel reportedly ramps up its test production.
US manufacturing of Apple processors was already on the rise, with Intel reportedly testing chipsets for iPhones and Macs, but TSMC has now approved an additional $20 billion for its Arizona Fab 21 factory. This is all due to both global political pressures and global shortages that require more processing plants.
According to TechPowerthe decision to increase the investment in Arizona included the possibility that TSMC would increase it further in the future. The confirmation of the $20 billion may be new, but it also corresponds to a report by Nikkei Asia in December 2025, TSMC would move its chipmaking tools to its second factory in Arizona around summer 2026.
But this report and new confirmation also aligns with how TSMC CEO CC Wei previously said the company needed to accelerate its U.S. expansion by “several quarters.” For example, its second factory was initially expected to be fully operational by 2028.
According to Consumer productsOverall, the TSMC Arizona Fab 21 factory spans 3.5 million square feet of space, built on 1,100 acres. It is estimated that it would produce between 90,000 and 100,000 4-nanometer wafers.
TSMC reportedly said Apple would purchase more than 100 million chips manufactured at Fab 21 by the end of 2026.
Politics and economics
It’s no coincidence that TSMC is doing this since Apple is signing deals with Intel. Alongside the global chip shortage due to exponential demand from AI companies, there are also trade tensions.
This has been particularly clear in the situation between the United States and China, especially under the current US administration. But as the CIA privately explained to Tim Cook, there is reason to fear a Chinese invasion of Taiwan by 2027.
TSMC’s vital importance to the global supply of processors, however, has so far given Taiwan what is known as a silicon shield. The belief is that if China invaded, the United States would support Taiwan because it is a very important country to the American and global economy.
Building manufacturing plants in the United States will not significantly replace the amount of processors made in Taiwan. This is especially true since it has been reported several times that the chips will have to return there to be finalized.
But it strengthens TSMC’s ties to the United States, at a time when there is strong pressure to relocate manufacturing.
Some claim that Apple is now buying processors from Intel because the Trump administration owns a share of that company. Likewise, there is an argument that TSMC’s expansion into Arizona is politically motivated.
This is actually just the latest increase. In 2020, TSMC announced the opening of a $12 billion factory in Arizona. Then, in 2024, even before this first factory opened, the company increased its investment to $40 billion.
This was a move to add a second manufacturing plant, and later still, TSMC added a third. For comparison, TMSC currently operates 11 factories in Taiwan, accounting for about 60% of Apple’s chip requirements.