TSMC recently announced that it plans to open a new R&D center in Hsinchu, Taiwan, next year to develop advanced technology using 2nm process nodes, the Commercial Daily News reported on December 30. The company declared that it is seeking land next to the new R&D center for a new fab to produce 2nm chips. The new fab, dubbed Bell Lab, is about to house 8,000 advanced R&D staff and comprise of two R&D sections, R1 and R2. R1 is currently under construction and will begin operations next year.
The company has started mass production of 3nm chips in the second half of 2022. Meanwhile, its 5nm chips that have begun mass production in 2022 is forecast to have grown 1.8 times in 2022. In addition to 5nm chips, the company has shipped more than 1 billion 7nm chips worldwide to support mobile devices like 5G smartphones. Despite some unfavorable factors in the second half of 2022, shipment value of the Taiwanese semiconductor industry is estimated to still have grown 15.8% year-on-year in 2022 to NT$4.37 trillion (US$144.7 billion; US$1=NT$30.2), according to MIC (Market Intelligence & Consulting Institute), a division of III (Institute for Information Industry), a major government think tank, and one of leading IT research institutes in Taiwan. In 2023, the industry is forecast to witness merely 1.7% growth year-on-year but is still higher than the global average.