Samsung Delays Mass Production of 1.4nm Process to 2029

A few days ago, a report suggested that Samsung might delay the mass production of its advanced 1.4nm process. Now, the company has officially confirmed that it plans to begin production in 2029, which is two years later than its original goal of 2027. The idea is to improve the yield of its 2nm and higher processes before moving ahead with the sub-2nm process.

Samsung pushes 1.4nm process production to 2029

Samsung has been desperately trying to bounce back in its semiconductor business. It continues to fall behind its arch-rival and industry leader, TSMC, in both revenue and market share. The Korean firm is struggling to secure deals with major clients for its 3nm nodes due to low yield and other issues. Samsung doesn’t want a repeat of it all in the 2nm era, and it is now focusing on improving yield and process stability rather than developing new nodes too quickly.

During the recent SAFE Forum 2025 event, Shin Jong-shin, Vice President and Head of Design Platform Development at the Foundry Division, officially announced that Samsung’s 1.4nm process mass production would begin in 2029. The company originally planned to produce these advanced nodes in 2027, but the company has now pushed back the schedule by two years. Interestingly, this puts Samsung Foundry one year behind TSMC, which is targeting 2028 for its 1.4nm node production.

Samsung shifts focus to 2nm process improvement

Korean media ETNews reports that Samsung plans to focus on stabilizing the 2nm process, such as SF2P (2nd generation) and SF2X (3rd generation), until 2028. Additionally, the company aims to increase the profitability of its more mature processes, such as 4nm, 5nm, and 8nm, which are already attracting customers.

“Samsung Foundry is inferior to TSMC in terms of process competitiveness, and the adjustment of the 1.4nm process schedule is a strategy to focus on improving the actual foundry business rather than competing to be the first in the world,” an industry insider told the publication.

In the past, Samsung aimed to be the first to start mass production of new nodes. For instance, it began producing its 3nm process ahead of TSMC in 2022. However, due to low yields, the company is now prioritizing process perfection over speed. Only time will tell if this new strategy will help Samsung regain momentum in the semiconductor space during the 2nm era.