Tech companies forced to develop own chips due to shortage

Tech companies across the globe are dealing with the shortage of chips and semi-conductors for the manufacturing of different gadgets. The shortage is due to the coronavirus pandemic induced lockdowns that affected the production and supply. As a result the chips are now high in demand and now some of the biggest firms in the world are looking forward to develop their own semi-conductors.

Company announcements and media reports have hinted that the companies including Facebook, Tesla, Amazon, Apple and Baidu are looking forward towards the development of chips so they will not have to depend on others for the supply. Accenture semi-conductor lead, Syed Alam, while talking to a leading daily expressed that the companies now want their chips to be custom made so they would fit in to their devices with specific requirements. This will spare the companies from using the generic ones that are also used by the competitors.

Alam added that by doing this, it will give them more power, control on the implementation of the hardware and software and will also help them to differentiate from the other companies in the market. Russ Shaw, who was a non-executive director at Dialog Semiconductor in the UK said that the chips that have been custom designed will be able to perform better and will also prove to be cheaper. Shaw added that the chips that have been custom designed for the devices would help to reduce the energy consumption.

At present the companies across the globe are thinking on from where to get their chips from for their products. The pandemic created a massive strain on the manufacturing units due to the uncertainty of the lockdowns in different nations. It also affected the transport and logistics. This has forced the companies to make their own arrangements for chips. Many have already started to innovate and have also locked their designs. The chip shortage has delayed the launch of new devices of a number of big companies including Apple.

Photo Credits: global electronic services