The global boom in artificial intelligence is creating a stark divide in the semiconductor industry, with Taiwan's TSMC solidifying its dominance while rival Samsung Electronics falls further behind, according to new industry data.
A report from Counterpoint Research shows that TSMC's global foundry market share surged to 38% in the second quarter of 2025. The company's revenue soared 44% year-over-year, fueled by overwhelming demand for its cutting-edge 3nm process and CoWoS advanced packaging, both critical for producing AI chips.
In stark contrast, Samsung Electronics saw its market share decline by 20% in the same period, underscoring a widening performance gap between the world's top two chip manufacturers.
The insatiable demand for high-performance GPUs and custom ASICs, the engines of the AI revolution, has funneled massive orders to foundries with the most advanced production capabilities. According to the report, cited by the Seoul Economic Daily, TSMC has emerged as the primary beneficiary of this trend.
While the overall semiconductor foundry market expanded by a healthy 19% in the second quarter, the gains were not distributed evenly. The report described TSMC as consolidating its leadership in the AI era, while Samsung appeared to stall, unable to close the technological gap.
Samsung lags behind expectations
Samsung's foundry unit, meanwhile, fell short of market expectations. Revenue rose just 3% in the second quarter of 2025, well below the industry average. Its market share slipped to 4%, down 20% from a year earlier, widening the gap with TSMC to 33 percentage points.
Counterpoint said TSMC's gains stemmed from its unmatched technological edge, including a stable 3-nanometer process and leadership in CoWoS packaging, which helped secure orders from major customers such as Nvidia and Apple.
Expansion and new technologies in focus
Counterpoint expects the semiconductor market to keep growing in the second half of 2025, driven by AI investment momentum and seasonal consumer demand. In South Korea, industry analysts are watching Samsung's progress on gate-all-around (GAA) transistors and how quickly it can expand advanced packaging capacity to meet surging AI chip demand.
Unlike traditional foundry data, Counterpoint's "Foundry 2.0" framework also includes vertically integrated device manufacturers (IDMs) and outsourced assembly and test (OSAT) firms, providing a more comprehensive view of the evolving ecosystem.
Article translated by Sherri Wang and edited by Jerry Chen
