Samsung, TSMC Commit to $400 Million ASML High NA Tools as AI Chip Demand Rises
Updated
Updated · CNBC · Sep 8
Samsung, TSMC Commit to $400 Million ASML High NA Tools as AI Chip Demand Rises
3 articles · Updated · CNBC · Sep 8
Summary
Samsung said it will use ASML’s High NA EUV machines for DRAM from 2028, while TSMC committed the tools for advanced chips as both back the next lithography step.
High NA systems print smaller, more intricate patterns, and TSMC said adoption should rise as AI chips require increasingly complex transistor architectures.
ASML’s machines cost about $400 million each, and Samsung said the technology should extend DRAM scaling and improve manufacturing efficiency by 2030.
The commitments add Samsung and TSMC to Intel as High NA customers, giving ASML clearer demand visibility as it plans about 30% more total EUV capacity in 2027.
ASML, Samsung and TSMC also joined an initiative to shift photomasks to a 12-inch format from 6-inch, aiming to lift productivity and cut chipmaking costs.
How will the unprecedented shift to 12-inch photomasks redefine the global semiconductor race amidst TSMC's surprisingly cautious adoption strategy?
Could the extreme technical hurdles of High-NA EUV force the tech world to abandon traditional scaling for advanced packaging alternatives?
High-NA EUV, $400 Million Machines, and the 12-Inch Mask Revolution: The New Economics and Geopolitics of AI Chips
Overview
In September 2026, TSMC and Samsung committed to adopting ASML’s High NA EUV lithography machines, with Samsung targeting DRAM production by 2028 and TSMC planning advanced AI logic chips by 2030. As chip designs grow more complex for AI, engineers have had to stitch multiple exposures using old 6-inch photomasks, which increases costs and defects. To solve this, ASML, TSMC, Samsung, and Intel are moving to 12-inch photomasks, eliminating stitching and boosting productivity. However, these High NA EUV machines cost up to $400 million each, making them accessible only to the wealthiest chipmakers and reinforcing ASML’s near-monopoly in advanced lithography.