The DRAM shortage has certainly forced a myriad of companies to contemplate their uncertain future, but Apple doesn’t appear to be on this list. Earlier, we reported that the iPhone maker was facing a supply chain migraine of epic proportions, where TSMC was sitting on a whopping $1 billion worth of A20 Pro supply because of inadequate DRAM supply. Fortunately for Apple, an analyst believes these claims are nothing but hot air and that Apple’s and TSMC’s tightly integrated and efficient operations are being severely underestimated.

The TF International Securities analyst doesn’t agree with Tim Culpan’s previous report, as he provides his detailed analysis on X, stating that Apple proceeds with its production schedule well in advance, and with its A20 Pro , which is the company’s first 2nm SoC, timing is of the essence. With the Cupertino firm typically initiating its schedule three months in advance, the required wafer volume will be parallel to the DRAM capacity available at the time.

Assuming that the supply of both components wasn’t aligned, Apple would see no reason to pay TSMC massive sums to mass-produce the 2nm SoC ahead of schedule if the final packaging step could not have been completed. That’s not to say that TSMC doesn’t have work-in-process (WIP) buffers, but sticking with this approach with a RAM supply bottleneck offers zero financial incentive.

Given that Apple and TSMC have established platinum-level supply chains and executed their operations to near-perfection, the Taiwanese semiconductor giant sitting on $1 billion worth of A20 Pro would represent an operational breakdown, which is highly uncharacteristic for the world’s largest wafer manufacturer. Kuo also notes that during TSMC’s Q2 2026 earnings call, CFO Wendell Huang noted an increase in inventory days, which was interpreted as definitive proof of the stranded Apple wafers.

The analyst states that an increase in inventory days is standard operating procedure whenever TSMC initiates the early mass production ramp of a next-generation node. A temporary rise in inventory naturally accompanies the transition to the 2nm process across the board, making it routine accounting rather than evidence of stranded stock. Also, Apple isn’t TSMC’s only 2nm customer, as Qualcomm, MediaTek, AMD, and others are also busy ramping up mass production of their own products.

If the semiconductor firm were indeed facing an operational breakdown, it would also be sitting on billions of unpackaged chipsets and processors from the aforementioned companies for the same reason: inadequate DRAM supply. Kuo reiterates that choked DRAM supply is not a myth and the entire industry is feeling it, but the situation isn’t so dire that TSMC is facing certain defeat with a truckload of silicon supply.

One argument can be made that Apple is frantically trying to tie up a deal with Chinese memory maker CXMT to use its DRAM in various products to protect itself from supply shortage surprises. Well, we’ve discussed various factors why the potential partnership could be limited to testing only , with one reason being CXMT’s limited capacity, so do give that a read.

News Source: Ming-Chi Kuo

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