According to Wccftech, industry sources suggest that SMIC is on track to finalize its 5nm chip development by 2025. However, the report highlights that the cost of SMIC’s 5nm wafers could be as much as 50% higher than those produced by TSMC. This price gap is largely due to SMIC’s lack of access to cutting-edge EUV equipment, forcing the company to rely on older DUV machines for its 5nm production.
The report highlights that SMIC’s 5nm wafer yields are reported to be only one-third of TSMC’s on the same process technology.
As per sources cited in the report, Huawei plans to use SMIC’s 5nm technology for its Ascend 910C AI chip, aiming to reduce China’s reliance on NVIDIA.
China’s Push for Homegrown EUV Technology
In order to reduce production costs and improve yields, the report suggests that SMIC’s most viable path forward may depend on China’s development of domestic EUV machines, which is rumored to begin trial production in Q3 2025.
SiCarrier—a Chinese equipment maker reportedly linked to Huawei— is developing alternatives to ASML tools to enable large-scale production of advanced chips, as the report underscores.
As noted by Chinese media outlet Securities Times, SiCarrier’s Chief Technology Officer, Dai Jun, also serves on SMIC’s board. In 2023, SiCarrier made headlines with a patent for producing 5nm chips using DUV technology—a breakthrough tied to Huawei’s 7nm chip in the Mate 60 Pro, according to South China Morning Post.
SMIC’s 2024 Performance and 2025 Outlook
According to TrendForce, SMIC secured third place in the global top 10 foundry rankings for Q4 2024, with revenue rising 1.7% quarter-over-quarter to USD 2.2 billion, capturing a 5.5% market share.
Notably, as highlighted by ijiwei, SMIC’s 2024 annual report indicates that 12-inch wafers continued to account for 77% of total revenue, while 8-inch wafers made up the remaining 23%.
SMIC’s 2024 annual report also states that the company achieved USD 8.03 billion in total revenue for the year, marking a 27% year-over-year increase and setting a new record. The capacity utilization rate reached 85.6%, significantly higher than the industry average. Looking ahead to 2025, SMIC expects its revenue growth to outpace the average of its industry peers, as noted by ijiwei.
[News] SMIC Reported to Complete 5nm Chips by 2025, but Costs May Be 50% Higher Than TSMC’s | TrendForce News
According to Wccftech, industry sources suggest that SMIC is on track to finalize its 5nm chip development by 2025. However, the report highlights tha...
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