TSMC’s Arizona project began as a single fab planned for 5nm production, but the company’s plans have since grown into a multi-fab campus. Fab 1 entered volume production of 4nm technology in the fourth quarter of 2024; official schedules put Fab 2’s start in the second half of 2027 and Fab 3’s by the end of the decade.
Is TSMC still building a 5nm fab in Arizona?
The 5nm fab was the starting plan announced on May 15, 2020—not the best description of the Arizona project today. TSMC’s original announcement called for one advanced fab with planned capacity of 20,000 semiconductor wafers per month, more than 1,600 direct high-tech professional jobs, and thousands of indirect ecosystem jobs. Construction was planned to start in 2021, with production targeted for 2024.
That project expanded into a multi-fab campus in Phoenix. TSMC now reports that Fab 1 makes 4nm chips, while later fabs are planned for 3nm and 2nm-class technologies. The original 5nm announcement remains relevant as the project’s origin, but it does not describe the current production node or the full campus roadmap.
What will the Arizona fabs make, and when?
The planned nodes and production schedules have changed across successive official announcements. The table distinguishes the original 2020 plan from later targets; a schedule is a target, not confirmation that a fab has begun production.
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| Project stage | Technology and status | Schedule or capacity | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Original Fab 1 announcement | 5nm wafer fabrication | Production targeted for 2024; planned capacity of 20,000 wafers per month | TSMC, May 15, 2020 |
| Two-fab plan | Fab 1 scheduled for N4; Fab 2 scheduled for 3nm | Fab 1 production scheduled for 2024 and Fab 2 for 2026; combined projected output of more than 600,000 wafers per year | TSMC, December 2022 |
| Three-fab plan | Fab 1: 4nm FinFET; Fab 2: 3nm and 2nm nanosheet; Fab 3: 2nm or more advanced, depending on customer demand | Fab 1’s production schedule was subsequently updated; later schedules are below | U.S. Department of Commerce, April 8, 2024 |
| Fab 1 production | 4nm volume production | TSMC says volume production began in Q4 2024; NIST lists high-volume production in the first half of 2025 | TSMC 2024 annual report; NIST project profile |
| Fab 2 target | Planned for 3nm and 2nm nanosheet technology | Second half of 2027 | NIST project profile |
| Fab 3 target | Planned for 2nm or more advanced technology, depending on customer demand | By the end of the decade | NIST project profile; U.S. Department of Commerce, April 8, 2024 |
TSMC’s annual report and NIST use different milestones for Fab 1: the company says it entered volume production in Q4 2024, while NIST lists high-volume production in the first half of 2025. Those descriptions establish a late-2024 start to volume production and a later high-volume milestone; they do not provide enough detail to equate the two labels more precisely.
How large is the investment?
TSMC’s current Arizona project page describes the campus as a US$165 billion investment plan, expanded from the original US$12 billion plan. The US$165 billion figure refers to the current campus plan, not the 2020 single-fab announcement.
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As part of its April 8, 2024 announcement of terms under the CHIPS Act, the U.S. Department of Commerce proposed up to US$6.6 billion in direct funding for TSMC’s Arizona project. “Proposed” and “up to” matter: that announcement is not evidence that the full amount was paid.
Earlier figures describe earlier stages. In December 2022, TSMC projected that its first two Arizona fabs together would make more than 600,000 wafers per year and generate more than US$40 billion in end-product value. Those were projections for the first two fabs, not the capacity or value of the later three-fab campus. The original 20,000-wafer-per-month figure applied to the single fab announced in 2020.
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What does the expansion mean for U.S. chip supply?
The Arizona project is both a manufacturing investment and a supply-chain initiative. The Commerce Department said the three fabs, at full capacity, were expected to manufacture tens of millions of leading-edge chips for smartphones, autonomous vehicles, and AI data-center servers. The announcement tied the project to U.S. semiconductor policy through proposed CHIPS Act direct funding.
Those figures describe expected output and policy support, not a guarantee that every chip used in those products will be made in Arizona. The current project page also says TSMC announced in July 2026 an intent to build several more fabs for 2nm-and-below technologies and advanced packaging. That is an announced intention beyond the three-fab roadmap, not a production schedule or capacity figure established here.
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What to take from the changing announcements
- The 2020 headline was accurate for the original plan: one 5nm fab, with production targeted for 2024.
- The current account is a larger Phoenix campus: Fab 1 produces 4nm technology, with later fabs planned for 3nm and 2nm-class processes.
- TSMC’s current stated investment plan is US$165 billion, compared with US$12 billion in the original plan; proposed federal direct funding is a separate figure.
- Fab 2 and Fab 3 remain future milestones in the cited official schedules, rather than operating fabs.
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