Google and TSMC Strike Long-Term Deal to Manufacture Tensor Chips for Pixel Phones: Report

Google is expected to unveil its Pixel 10 series later this year with its next-generation SoC — Tensor G5. The new chipset is said to be being developed in partnership with TSMC. As we wait for the arrival of new generation Pixel phones with the new custom-built chip, a report coming out of China suggests that Google will continue its partnership with TSMC for a couple of years. It is said to use the TSMC chipset until at least through the Pixel 14 series in 2029.

Google's Partnership With TSMC to Continue for the Next 3–5 Years

As per a report by Digitimes, Google is strengthening its partnership with Taiwan's semiconductor industry. The report indicates that Google executives visited TSMC in Taiwan to discuss long-term collaboration, suggesting a multi-year partnership that could extend to future Pixel models, including the Pixel 14 series, which is believed to arrive in 2029. 

"The cooperation between the two parties will last for many years, at least until the stage of the new Pixel 14, which is about three to five years later", the report added. Beyond smartphones, Google's collaboration with Taiwanese firms is likely to expand into cloud-based TPU chips, IC design, server, and liquid cooling companies (translated).

The upcoming Pixel 10 series, which is said to launch in late 2025, will reportedly debut Google's TSMC made Tensor G5 chip. It is said to be manufactured using a 3nm process. The lineup is expected to include four models — Pixel 10, Pixel 10 Pro, Pixel 10 Pro XL, and Pixel 10 Pro Fold.

Previous leaks suggest that the Tensor G5 chip will bring hardware changes and improvements over the Tensor G4. It could include an always-on compute (AoC) audio processor, Google Emerald Hill memory co-processor, Google GXP (DSP), and the Google EdgeTPU. The Tensor G5 will reportedly come with Arm Cortex CPU cores and is said to feature a GPU from Imagination Technologies DXT.