‘Samsung produces new generation Google Tensor-soc on 4nm process’

Samsung is reportedly going to produce the second generation of Google’s Tensor-soc. The South Korean company also makes the first generation of the Tensor. The new system-on-a-chip would be produced on Samsung’s 4nm process, just like Samsung’s own chips.

Mass production of the second generation Tensor soc will start in June, reports DDaily based on anonymous sources. DDaily also reports that this soc is made on Samsung’s 4nm process, so not on 5nm, like the first Tensor soc.

According to DDaily, Samsung will use panel level packaging for the new Tensor-soc. Chips cut from a wafer are bundled on a rectangular instead of a circular panel. Because more chips fit on such a rectangle, more can be processed at the same time. According to DDaily, this should reduce costs and increase production.

Not much is known about the new Tensor soc. Android 13 code already hinted that Samsung would produce the new soc and that it would get a new modem. According to that code, the new Tensor soc has the type number GS201.

Google’s choice to stay with Samsung is not an obvious one. Qualcomm previously switched from Samsung to TSMC with the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1. TSMC’s 4nm node is seen as more energy-efficient than Samsung’s variant, allowing the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 to be faster, while using less power than the 8 Gen 1.

The new Tensor soc is in any case used for Google’s Pixel 7 phone. Google announced this last month. The device will have a design that is similar to that of the Pixel 6. Google previously said that the new Tensor-soc should be able to improve functions such as speech recognition, photos and videos. The Pixel 7 series will be released this fall.

Google’s Pixel 7 phones