GlobalFoundries: Clients Are Migrating to Sub-10nm Faster Than Expected

GlobalFoundries, a semiconductor manufacturer, has reported that its clients are migrating to sub-10nm technologies faster than anticipated.
This shift is impacting the company as it had ceased development of its 7 nm-class process technology in 2018 and refocused on specialty process technologies.
The company’s communications infrastructure and data center segment showed weakness through 2023, partly due to the accelerated node migration of data center and digital-centric customers to single-digit nanometers.
The best node that GlobalFoundries currently offers is its 12LP+ fabrication process, which should be comparable to 10nm-class nodes of other foundries.
However, based on the characteristics of 12LP+ demonstrated by GlobalFoundries, it cannot compete against 7nm-class process technologies in terms of transistor density, performance, and power.
As a result, some of 12LP+ customers are probably inclined to use 7 nm fabrication technologies instead, which is what GlobalFoundries confirms.
The company is actively watching these industry trends and executing opportunities to remake some of its excess capacity to serve demand in more durable and growing segments such as automotive, and smart mobile devices.