Qualcomm confirms it will dual-source chips from Samsung Foundry and TSMC
Now that the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 is official and confirmed to be manufactured on TSMC's N4P node, it's time to shift focus to its successor. Insiders have gone back and forth about which foundry the Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 will use, with one suggesting TSMC exclusivity and the other Samsung Foundry. Dual sourcing is also on the table, which Qualcomm has now confirmed.
In an interview with South Korean news outlet ETNews, Qualcomm Senior Vice President Alex Katuzian said it is open to working with Samsung Foundry for future chip needs. CEO Cristiano Amon adds that the company has no choice but to diversify its sources due to high demand and limited production capacity at TSMC. Furthermore, Qualcomm's products range between mobile APs, 5G modems, AR/VR chips and IoT parts, many of which do not require cutting-edge nodes.
Unfortunately, the report doesn't confirm if future high-end Snapdragon chips will be made by Samsung Foundry. Mid-range and entry-level offerings like the Snapdragon 7s Gen 2 and Snapdragon 4 Gen 2 are both manufactured on Samsung's 4 nm node. The dual-sourcing could happen in 2024 when Samsung's 3GAP node enters high-volume manufacturing. Chips fabricated on it (Snapdragon 8 Gen 5/Exynos 2500) will hit shelves in 2025.
