Chapter 442: Understanding the manufacturing process
For example, Pingguo was the first to launch 5nm chips, and in terms of chip performance, even last year’s A14 chip is still unsurpassed by chip companies such as Qualcomm and MediaTek. existence.
But now TSMC will give 4nm to MediaTek first. Will Cook be happy?
Perhaps it was due to the leaking of the house and the continuous rain. Such a wave of "loyalty and love for domestic products" statements made by Daxia mobile phone manufacturers made Qualcomm feel unhappy.
Why are you using labor-management chips to go high-end, and now you are turning your back on them?
A Qualcomm spokesperson immediately stated that the next generation of Snapdragon 8 series chips will use TSMC and Samsung’s 4nm processes respectively.
At this point, the entire northwest of Shanxi is really in chaos.
As we all know, Pingguo is TSMC’s largest customer. Xiayin Star Calendar contributed more than 70 billion yuan in revenue to TSMC in 2020, and it is expected to contribute more than 80 billion yuan in revenue in 2021.
It can be said that whatever good things TSMC has obtained from AS-ML, and any new processes and technologies it develops, they are often provided to Pingguo first. However, in the 4nm process, TSMC actually It was first supplied to MediaTek, and even Qualcomm got involved.
Many people picked up the watermelon at this time and were ready to eat it and watch the show.
But when it comes to Pingguo, there are actually no ups and downs.
Others felt it was strange. Even when the head of his own semiconductor department knew the news, he specifically asked Gu Qing how to deal with it.
Gu Qing smiled at this and said: "You are still too naive. The relationship between Pingguo and TSMC is closer than you think, but it is also more embarrassing.
First of all, TSMC’s 5nm and 4nm processes are actually the same generation of technology, and even these There is no problem if the 4nm process is called 5nm+.
It should be just a transitional process for TSMC, and the order volume of Pingguo chips is huge. It is definitely impossible for TSMC to expand the production capacity of the transitional process to the extreme for Pingguo.
But Qualcomm and MediaTek are different. Qualcomm was called the Fire Dragon because of Korean stars, and MediaTek has been unable to reach the high-end, so both want to seize the opportunity of TSMC's 4nm process, take the lead in launching 4nm chips, and integrate 4nm chips into the market. Craftsmanship is the main selling point, even if they can't make many orders at all.
Cook probably wants the Pingguo 14 to be equipped with a 3nm process chip to once again establish a win. "
Li You has been doing research and development all day long in the past few years and has become less sensitive to business, so he asked this question. After Gu Qing explained clearly, he suddenly realized.
However, He had new doubts: "But 3nm has already begun to solve the problems of quantum tunneling, and the stability of the chip will also be greatly tested in this process. Is TSMC capable of providing Pingguo with foundry capabilities for 3nm chips next year?" ? ”
Gu Qing smiled.
"Their current 4nm is not 4nm. Naturally, they won't be able to produce 3nm next year, but can't they just change the name?"
Speaking of this, Boss Gu asked: "You and Xiaxin Technology still have How is the progress of the cooperation with Pudong Microelectronics? Next year is when our high-end process production capacity will explode. If it is postponed to the second half of next year, This will affect the entire company's planning."
Hearing Gu Qing ask this question, he didn't know the reason why the R&D team had unified fitness in the past two years. Li You patted his body very boldly. Pectoralis major, said: "No problem! Although the new standards and manufacturing processes are a bit difficult, we have adopted an online and offline dual-channel support approach. According to the project, industry experts from relevant departments and institutions are working closely together, and it is expected that the official production of real 5nm process chips will begin in January next year. It is conservatively estimated that the production capacity of 200,000 wafers per month will be achieved in the first quarter. ""That's not bad. Yes, as the project leader, you must pay close attention to every link, and the 4nm process technology can be handed over to Xia at the end of this month. Core Technology asked them to do pre-research. Once they understand it thoroughly and successfully upgrade, they should go to Xiayin Star Calendar 1023."
Li You nodded, he was thinking about letting it go quickly now. When its own 5nm process technology is fully implemented for production, Chenxing S12 can completely defeat Qualcomm Snapdragon, Pingguo, and Intel chips.
But before he could think about it, Gu Qing patted him on the shoulder and said, "We've caught up. You, the person in charge, usually travel from east to west. Although some things can be solved by video conference, it is easier to discuss them in person. For details, the software engineering department is in the next building. You can call a few semiconductor engineers by the way. The management of the physical R&D department came over and informed Zhang Yantai that they would start a video conference. Regarding the industrial software, we will discuss it today. If there are any disputes later, it will be easier to deal with. "
Li You looked stunned. Looking at Gu Qing's young face, I felt a little shy and hot on my cheeks.
“I didn’t expect this matter to be known to you. We didn’t handle it well.”
Gu Qing explained in a mature manner: “Although they are all from the same company, the project planning is There will always be some mistakes in coordinating with the department's mission goals and human resources. You guys will The physical R&D department is in a hurry, and their software engineering department is also in a hurry. If there is no fight, it will be fine.
In fact, it is also the fault of the lack of coordination between our human resources and technical reserves. If each department has ten people. With tens of thousands of elite employees, how can we talk about rushing work?”
These words made Li You feel even more ashamed.
Gu Qing has always been vigorous and resolute in his work. Although it was a spur-of-the-moment idea, the people who were notified still came according to the invitation. With the help of the accompanying security team, the executives from other places found a place with good sound insulation and safety. Gao's room started a video conference.
There was no big blackboard or ppt. Gu Qing stood at the front, facing the executives of the software engineering department and semiconductor department, as well as the conference camera, and first saluted with his hands clasped in fists.
“Today I made an impromptu invitation to participate in this meeting. I’m afraid it will delay some of your important work. Here, I would like to say sorry to everyone.”
The big boss behaves like this, others Although people are somewhat understanding and moved in their hearts, how can they sit back and accept it with peace of mind?
Everyone stood up in unison and bowed in return.
Bowing in return and saluting with hands clasped in fists are all the rituals of Daxia, but they were used by white-eyed wolves for their own use. It is really ridiculous, and it is inevitable to look like a crown prince after doing it, but today The conference room of Jiuzhou Technology seemed to have a polite and reasonable opening.
Of course, regarding the convening of this temporary meeting and looking at the identities of the people in the congregation, some sensitive people are already a little restless.
Are you going to be criticized?
Although time was tight, Gu Qing didn't seem to be in a hurry.
He did not criticize anyone directly, but sighed: "In the development of information technology system in Daxia, there has always been a debate on the technical route. Should we integrate into the ecosystem led by international companies? Or start from scratch to create an independent ecosystem?"
< br>(End of this chapter)