GlobalFoundries Wins $2 Billion TSMC Deal to Make Silicon Interposers for AI Chips in New York
GlobalFoundries on Thursday announced a multi-year, $2 billion manufacturing agreement with TSMC under which it will produce silicon interposers — a key component inside advanced AI chip packages — at its facility in Malta, New York. The deal marks a notable partnership between two companies that are normally rivals in the foundry business.
A silicon interposer is a thin piece of silicon that sits beneath processors and memory chips inside advanced AI packages, letting them communicate with each other at high speeds. The components GlobalFoundries will make are tailored for TSMC's CoWoS advanced packaging ecosystem, the technology used to assemble high-performance AI accelerators.
First U.S.-Based Source of Silicon Interposers
Under the five-year agreement, GlobalFoundries will expand manufacturing capacity at its Malta fab to produce the interposers for TSMC. The company said the Malta site is expected to become the first U.S.-based source of silicon interposers used in advanced chip-packaging technologies, with volume production expected to begin ramping up in the first half of 2028.
The agreement also provides a framework for future capacity expansion as demand for advanced packaging grows. Shares of GlobalFoundries were up about 4% in premarket trading after the announcement.
Why Advanced Packaging Matters for AI
Advanced packaging has become one of the biggest constraints on AI chip production, with demand for the technology exceeding available manufacturing capacity. Packing multiple chips closely together inside a single package lets data move faster between them while using less energy — a critical requirement for data-center AI hardware.
By turning Malta into a domestic source of interposers, the deal also supports efforts to build a U.S.-based supply chain for AI and high-performance computing technologies, reducing reliance on overseas packaging capacity.
Sources:
GlobalFoundries to make key AI chip component for TSMC – Reuters
GlobalFoundries to make key AI chip component for TSMC in $2 billion deal – CNA
GlobalFoundries on Thursday announced a multi-year, $2 billion manufacturing agreement with TSMC under which it will produce silicon interposers — a key component inside advanced AI chip packages — at its facility in Malta, New York. The deal marks a notable partnership between two companies that are normally rivals in the foundry business.
A silicon interposer is a thin piece of silicon that sits beneath processors and memory chips inside advanced AI packages, letting them communicate with each other at high speeds. The components GlobalFoundries will make are tailored for TSMC's CoWoS advanced packaging ecosystem, the technology used to assemble high-performance AI accelerators.
First U.S.-Based Source of Silicon Interposers
Under the five-year agreement, GlobalFoundries will expand manufacturing capacity at its Malta fab to produce the interposers for TSMC. The company said the Malta site is expected to become the first U.S.-based source of silicon interposers used in advanced chip-packaging technologies, with volume production expected to begin ramping up in the first half of 2028.
The agreement also provides a framework for future capacity expansion as demand for advanced packaging grows. Shares of GlobalFoundries were up about 4% in premarket trading after the announcement.
Why Advanced Packaging Matters for AI
Advanced packaging has become one of the biggest constraints on AI chip production, with demand for the technology exceeding available manufacturing capacity. Packing multiple chips closely together inside a single package lets data move faster between them while using less energy — a critical requirement for data-center AI hardware.
By turning Malta into a domestic source of interposers, the deal also supports efforts to build a U.S.-based supply chain for AI and high-performance computing technologies, reducing reliance on overseas packaging capacity.
Sources:
GlobalFoundries to make key AI chip component for TSMC – Reuters
GlobalFoundries to make key AI chip component for TSMC in $2 billion deal – CNA
