GlobalFoundries Signs $2 Billion Deal With TSMC to Make AI Chip Packaging Components in the US
New York, October 2026: GlobalFoundries has signed a multi-year, $2 billion agreement with TSMC to produce silicon interposers for TSMC's CoWoS advanced packaging technology. Production will take place at GlobalFoundries' facility in Malta, New York, and is expected to ramp up in the first half of 2028. GlobalFoundries says it will be the first US-based source of silicon interposers for advanced AI packaging.
What are CoWoS and interposers?
Modern AI accelerators, such as Nvidia's data-centre GPUs, are not one chip. They combine a powerful processor with stacks of high-bandwidth memory (HBM) in a single package.
- CoWoS (Chip-on-Wafer-on-Substrate) is TSMC's leading 2.5D packaging technology for this.
- A silicon interposer is a thin slice of silicon with very fine wiring that sits underneath the processor and memory and connects them at extremely high speed.
CoWoS capacity has been one of the biggest bottlenecks in AI chip supply in recent years.
Why the deal matters
- More AI chip capacity: extra interposer supply could help ease shortages of AI accelerators.
- Supply-chain resilience: most advanced packaging is in Taiwan. A US source reduces geopolitical risk.
- US industrial policy: the deal supports US goals, backed by the CHIPS and Science Act, to bring more of the semiconductor supply chain home.
- Partners, not just rivals: GlobalFoundries and TSMC are both contract chipmakers, but the deal shows how the AI boom is creating new cooperation across the industry.
The AI hardware boom
The agreement comes as:
- Samsung projected about 107.4 trillion won in Q3 operating profit on AI memory demand
- SpaceX is reportedly arranging about $40 billion of financing to buy Nvidia processors
India's semiconductor angle
India is building assembly, testing and packaging capacity under the India Semiconductor Mission, including OSAT projects. Advanced packaging is increasingly seen as a strategic opportunity for countries entering the chip industry.
Sources
- TechStartups, "Tech News Weekly Roundup" (9 October 2026): https://techstartups.com/2026/10/09/tech-news-weekly-roundup-the-biggest-stories-in-ai-big-tech-startups-and-cybersecurity/