There have been rumors that Samsung could be responsible for the manufacturing of Apple’s A9 chipset which is rumored to make its way into the next-gen iPhone. However according to newer rumors, Apple’s A9 chipset could be made by TSMC while Samsung remains as one of Apple’s backup manufacturers should TSMC run into any issues.
The rumors claim that TSMC has better production yields which is why Apple could be going with them for the A9 manufacturing instead of Samsung. Interestingly enough had Apple and Samsung not gotten into a legal spat, the South Korean tech giant could still be responsible for the bulk of Apple’s orders, but it looks like for now, TSMC will be the primary manufacturer.
However the rumors are also claiming that Apple will also be spreading out the manufacturing process of the A9 processor across multiple companies. This isn’t too surprising as the spreading out of the manufacturing process will help Apple reduce their risk should any one of their manufacturing partners runs into a problem or does not meet Apple’s requirements.
In any case it remains to be seen if the rumors pan out, but until we hear from Apple officially or if a teardown reveals TSMC’s involvement, we suggest that you take it with a grain of salt for now.