Apple plans to upgrade the base iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro lineups with two versions of the A18 chip later this year as it places an order worth 100 million chips from TSMC, according to a new report from the Taiwan-based Commercial Times.
Per the report, Apple will release both the A18 chip and an A18 Pro variant for the iPhone 16 lineup this year with both processors based around TSMC’s N3E process. Apple already uses N3E, TSMC’s second-generation 3-nanometer node, with the M4 chip, and the technology is expected to make its way to the entire iPhone 16 lineup.
Apple has reportedly increased the size of its chip orders from TSMC in anticipation of the iPhone 16 lineup, with the report estimating that Apple has demanded between 90 million and 100 million units in total of the A18 processor. A key selling point of the A18 will be an expanded number of GPU and Neural Engine cores, which should dramatically improve the performance of Apple Intelligence features on the iPhone 16.
In addition to the new chip, Apple will equip all models of the iPhone 16 with 8GB of memory, which seems to be a minimum for supporting Apple Intelligence. The iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max already feature 8GB of RAM, whereas the base iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus stand at 6GB.
Apple is set to announce the iPhone 16 lineup as usual in September. The base iPhone 16 models are rumored to gain a new camera module design, while the Pro lineup will gain larger 6.3-inch and 6.9-inch displays. All devices are set to feature a new “Capture button” for easier camera settings control.
