TSMC has announced a $100 billion increase to its U.S. chip investment, bringing its total commitment to $265 billion. The increase was confirmed by the White House and the Department of Commerce alongside TSMC's second quarter earnings call. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said the investment would "create tens of thousands of American jobs," while TSMC chairman and CEO C.C. Wei told CNBC the new fabrication plants would support "our leading U.S. customers," a group that reportedly includes Apple, alongside Nvidia and Broadcom.

Apple CEO Tim Cook called Apple "TSMC Arizona's first and largest customer" when the company's third Arizona fab broke ground last year, and the first Arizona plant already produced some of Apple's A16 chips. TSMC has historically reserved its most advanced manufacturing processes for its home plants in Taiwan, meaning Arizona-made chips have trailed several generations behind. TSMC has since committed to building advanced packaging facilities in the US as part of its broader plan.

The new $100 billion is expected to fund up to four more plants. The Department of Commerce says the total will reach 12 U.S. facilities, while a Bloomberg source indicated the mix could be 10 fabrication plants and two packaging facilities, focused on 2 nanometer chips, TSMC's most advanced process commercially available today. That timing could hinge partly on how much U.S. capacity Apple needs, as the company has been exploring Intel and Samsung as backup chipmakers to reduce reliance on TSMC. Apple reportedly secured an exemption from a proposed 100% semiconductor tariff by pledging its own U.S. manufacturing investment and agreeing to buy chips from Intel.