Mashable: The forthcoming M2 Pro chips will likely be the first to use the 3nm process.

TSMC, Apple's major chip supplier, will begin 3nm mass production this week. The new process is believed to be used in the next M2 Pro chips, which are expected to power updated MacBook Pro and Mac mini versions.

In keeping with past speculations that 3nm mass production wouldn't commence until later in 2022, a fresh report from DigiTimes claims that TSMC will begin production of their next-generation 3nm chip technology on Thursday, December 29.

TSMC is reportedly planning a celebration for December 29 at Fab 18 in the Southern Taiwan Science Park (STSP) to celebrate the beginning of mass manufacturing of chips made with 3nm process technology. According to insiders at semiconductor equipment suppliers, the pure-play foundry will also reveal intentions to increase 3nm chip manufacturing at the fab.

Apple's A16 Bionic processor in the iPhone 14 Pro series is manufactured using TSMC's 4nm process, but the company may switch to 3nm as soon as the first quarter of next year. An August report said that the forthcoming M2 Pro chips will be the first to use the 3nm process. The M2 Pro chip will likely initially appear in refreshed 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pros early next year, with refreshed Mac Studio and Mac mini models following shortly after.

Another claim suggests that the M3 chip and the A17 Bionic for the iPhone 15 would be built on TSMC's improved 3nm technology, which is expected to be released later in 2023.

As for Industry rivals, Qualcomm's latest Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chip is based on TSMC's 4nm process which will power most Android flagships to debut early 2023 and later.