The upcoming iPhone SE 4 may be the first iPhone in 14 years to feature a system-on-chip (SoC) manufactured in the United States. According to a report by independent journalist Tim Culpan, the A16 Bionic chip, which debuted two years ago in the iPhone 14 Pro, is currently being produced at TSMC’s Fab 21 facility in Arizona.
The source reveals that the Arizona-made A16 chips use the same N4P process as those manufactured in Taiwan. This process, considered an better version of the 5nm chips.
While the A16 chip is currently used in the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 15, rumors say that these US-made chips could be used in the upcoming iPhone SE 4. And honestly, the iPhone SE series looks like an ideal candidate for the Arizona-made A16 chips.
The iPhone SE 4 is rumored to launch in early 2025, and could be even before the full release of Apple Intelligence, could a 6.1-inch OLED display, a refreshed design similar to the iPhone 14, and a larger battery compared to its predecessor.
The last iPhone to feature a US-made SoC was the iPhone 4S, released in October 2011. The A5 chip used in the iPhone 4S was partially manufactured by Samsung at its Austin, Texas facility. Since then, Apple has relied on overseas manufacturing for its iPhone processors, primarily through TSMC in Taiwan.