Nikkei: Google Tensor is a 5nm chip and Samsung is handling production

Damien Wilde | Aug 3 2021 - 10:17 am PT

With the hype surrounding the Pixel 6 series now at an all-time high, we’re learning more by the hour. The latest such snippet is that the Google Tensor chipset to be used within the upcoming duo will reportedly be made using a 5nm process, with Samsung handling the production.

Naturally, the news that Samsung is handling production should come as no surprise whatsoever, given that Google has reportedly co-developed the firm’s first dedicated smartphone chip with the Korean tech giant.

However, sources close to Nikkei Asia suggests that the Google Tensor chipset will be built using a 5nm fabrication process, which is the same as the flagship Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 mobile chipset and Samsung’s own Exynos 1080/2100 chips.

Google did not disclose who will manufacture the Tensor chip for Pixel, but sources familiar with the matter told Nikkei Asia that Samsung handle production using its advanced 5-nanometer process technology.

It’s worth noting that Samsung declined to comment on Nikkei’s report, with Google providing no information on who would handle the chipset – previously known as “Whitechapel” – production. Of course, there are very few companies with the track record and capability to fulfill large chipset orders for smartphone production. The Korean tech giant is one of the few capable of doing so.

If the Tensor chip is indeed based upon the 5nm fabrication process, it could provide notable efficiency gains over the 7nm process used within the Pixel 5’s Qualcomm Snapdragon 765G SoC. Google said that the Tensor chip has been four years in the making and has been designed “specifically for Pixels,” which indicates that we’ll likely only see it in Made by Google hardware.