According to a new report coming from China, Google made a rather major change when it comes to its future chips. Google has decided to take a step back from Samsung for future Tensor and AI chips. Not the ones coming this year, though. More on that later.
Google is about to step away from Samsung for future Tensor & AI chips
This information comes from Taiwan Economic Daily, and it claims Google is looking for alternative semiconductor suppliers for its “Tensor” chips. The company allegedly approached Taiwanese companies in the process.
The name ‘KYEC’ was mentioned in the report, as the company allegedly secured a portion of Google’s orders. Google also invested in KYEC’s facilities in Taiwan in order for the manufacturing process to run smoothly. Process testing is expected to kick off mid-year.
Why is Samsung even mentioned here? Well, because the company was the sole supplier of Google’s Tensor chips thus far. Google is rumored to use TSMC’s N3E process for the Tensor G5, though, so taking a step back from Samsung may not be all that surprising.
Google is allegedly collaborating with KYEC, a Taiwanese company
Now, I also mentioned AI chips in the title. Well, in addition to Tensor chips, Google is expected to collaborate with KYEC for its AI chips too. It’s a bit surprising Google didn’t immediately go for TSMC, also a Taiwanese company, but went for KYEC, a far less-known name.
Needless to say, this collaboration can highly benefit KYEC. On the opposite side, KYEC will likely provide Google with plenty of freedom when it comes to chip designs, and that’s probably what Google wants.
The Tensor G4 next year will be a completely different product
Just to be perfectly clear, however, don’t expect any of what we talked about here to reflect on the Tensor G4. The Tensor G4 will fuel the Google Pixel 9 series later this year. That chip will almost certainly be provided solely by Samsung, as were the previous three.
The real change will come with the Tensor G5. Previous rumors/reports suggested it, and so does the new one. So, look for those changes in Q4 2025, not Q4 2024.
2024-01-17 15:05:54