TSMC's orders surged by 25%! Nvidia adds Blackwell architecture GPU orders to TSMC

According to the Taiwan Economic Daily, industry insiders revealed that international giants such as Amazon, Dell, Google, Meta, and Microsoft will all introduce NVIDIA's Blackwell architecture GPU to build AI servers with higher capacity than expected. As a result, NVIDIA has increased its orders to TSMC by about 25%.

Analysis suggests that as TSMC reportedly begins production of the Blackwell platform architecture graphics processing unit (GPU), it signifies the imminent launch of NVIDIA's AI server equipped with the "world's strongest AI chip," marking the start of a new chapter in the AI industry. This is expected to be a focal point in TSMC's earnings conference call this week.

Analysts estimate that the average selling price (ASP) of the NVIDIA B100 GPU built with the Blackwell architecture is between $30,000 and $35,000. The super chip GB200, which connects the Grace CPU and B200 GPU, is priced between $60,000 and $70,000 or even higher. This means that NVIDIA's related chips are historically the most expensive chips produced by TSMC.

The NVIDIA Blackwell architecture GPU, known as the "world's strongest AI chip," features 208 billion transistors and is manufactured using TSMC's customized 4-nanometer process. The GPU, which is twice the size of a bare die, connects individual GPUs through chip-to-chip interconnects at a speed of 10TB per second, supporting AI training and real-time large-scale language model inference. The model can scale up to 10 trillion parameters.

As NVIDIA expands the production volume of the Blackwell architecture GPU, the number of terminal server racks, including the GB200 NVL72 and GB200 NVL36 server racks, has also significantly increased. The expected combined shipment of 40,000 units has surged to 60,000 units, a growth rate of up to 50%, with the GB200 NVL36 accounting for the highest total of 50,000 units.

Industry estimates indicate that the average selling price of the GB200 NVL36 server rack is $1.8 million, while the GB200 NVL72 server rack is priced even higher at $3 million. The GB200 NVL36 contains 36 super chips GB200, 18 Grace CPUs, and 36 enhanced B200 GPUs; the GB200 NVL72 contains 72 super chips GB200, 36 Grace CPUs, and 72 B200 GPUs.

Former TSMC Chairman Morris Chang forecasted in June that the current demand for AI applications is more optimistic than a year ago, stating that "this year is another year of significant growth." Current Chairman Mark Liu has also revealed that AI applications are just beginning, expressing optimism similar to everyone else