Rapidus, a foundry corporation established to revive Japan's semiconductor industry, is struggling to secure customers for its 2-nanometer process. Analysis suggests that the lack of experience with advanced processes is hindering the company from winning orders from global big tech corporations. Concerns have been raised that Rapidus needs to acquire various capabilities required for advanced semiconductor manufacturing beyond solely focusing on fine foundry processes, including advanced packaging.
According to industry reports on the 12th, Rapidus is facing difficulties in securing orders. Japanese media outlets, including Asahi Shimbun, reported that "Rapidus has not secured key clients like smartphone application processor (AP) manufacturers and semiconductors for data center servers," stating, "If difficulties persist in securing orders from big tech corporations, it could follow in the footsteps of Intel, which recorded massive losses."
Rapidus is a company jointly established by major Japanese corporations, including Toyota, Sony, SoftBank, and Kioxia, and is building production lines for advanced semiconductor processes, including artificial intelligence (AI) semiconductors, with support from the Japanese government. Rapidus plans to mass-produce semiconductors through the 2-nanometer process by October 2027. The Rapidus factory is managed by the New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO), and the company intends to acquire the facility from the government before starting mass production. Last year, the Japanese government decided on an investment of $1.3 billion (approximately 1.7 trillion won).
However, excluding Broadcom, Rapidus has not secured global big tech customers to date. The only publicly known customers of Rapidus so far are Japanese semiconductor startup Preferred Networks (PFN) and Taiwan's Unichip. An industry source noted, "Producing prototypes and mass production through advanced foundry processes requires at least hundreds of millions of won in funding. If massive amounts of capital are invested and semiconductors of the desired quality are not produced, it would be no different from a complete waste," adding, "Ordering from Rapidus, which has no experience in foundry processes, is a considerable risk."
With Rapidus having injected significant funds without securing customers and verifying technological capabilities, concerns are escalating even in Japan. Unlike TSMC, which is constructing a 2-nanometer production line with secured customers, Rapidus has prioritized establishing production facilities before attracting significant investments. The problem is that the 2-nanometer process is highly challenging, as even TSMC and Samsung Electronics are struggling to secure yield.
Professor Lee Jong-hwan of Sungmyung University's System Semiconductor Engineering Department explained, "If the foundry, a significant pillar of the ecosystem, is shaken while the Japanese government plans to invest tens of trillions of won to revive the AI and semiconductor industries, it will inevitably cause disruptions," adding, "If there is a lack of process experience and securing customers remains elusive, difficulties will follow."
Kouki Inoue, chief researcher at the Japan Machinery Industry Association, said, "Even if successful in miniaturization processes, technology capable of maximizing power efficiency is necessary," urging that Japan should focus on next-generation advanced packaging in collaboration with semiconductor equipment and material corporations that have excellent technological capabilities.