Apple is losing its grip on the world's tech supply chain

""Apple is no longer the gravitational center of the hardware universe," said Brad Gastwirth, global head of research and market intelligence at Circular Technology, who tracks the industry's supply chain. "Apple still moves huge volumes and has unmatched brand strength. But the company is no longer the anchor client for fabs, substrate makers, or key component suppliers. That's a fundamental change.""

"When TSMC reported results this week, it became very clear that its smartphone business is no longer its most important segment. High-performance computing - a category dominated by AI chips for companies like Nvidia and hyperscale cloud providers - now accounts for roughly 58% of TSMC's revenue, far surpassing smartphone processors. TSMC makes chips for Nvidia's AI servers, which are being snapped up in huge volumes by the cloud giants."

For over a decade, Apple sat at the center of the tech supply chain, using enormous scale to dictate pricing, lock up capacity, and steer supplier roadmaps for chips, memory, substrates, and packaging. That era is ending as AI companies and cloud hyperscalers become increasingly important customers for chipmakers and component suppliers. Companies like Nvidia and cloud giants such as Amazon, Microsoft, and Google now drive demand for high-performance computing. TSMC's revenue mix shows high-performance computing roughly 58% of revenue, surpassing smartphone processors, moving supplier leverage and preferential access toward AI and cloud players.

Read at Business Insider