Apple is huddling with Intel and Samsung to move production of the processors for the iPhone and iPad maker’s devices stateside, according to a report published Tuesday by Bloomberg.
The financial news service, citing people familiar with the deliberations, reported that the “exploratory discussions” were aimed at providing Apple with a secondary option to Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC), a long-time Apple partner.
“All companies are looking at diversifying their supply chain now — for good reason,” observed Jack E. Gold, founder and principal analyst at J.Gold Associates, an IT advisory company in Northborough, Mass.
“You don’t want to have one single point of failure, if, God forbid, something happens to Taiwan,” he told TechNewsWorld. “Whether China attacks or there’s a major earthquake or tsunami or who knows what, it’s never good to have a sole source of supply.”
William Kerwin, a senior equity analyst with Morningstar Research Services in Chicago, agreed. “Shifting semiconductor production to the U.S. can provide supply chain diversification, which hedges against both pricing and potential geopolitical risk for Taiwan,” he told TechNewsWorld.
