Apple's brand-new M3 processors are due to arrive soon, to supplent their M2 predecessors, and according to semiconductor analyst Jay Goldberg taping out the new chips cost Cupertino a pretty penny.

For example, the A17 Pro chip in the iPhone 15 Pro is made with 19 billion transistors, whereas the M3 Max SoC has 92 billion ... called the tape-out. This is when the design is finalized, and ...

Recent reports indicate that the tape out and design phases alone for the M3 series amounted to approximately US$1 billion. While Apple's revenue and net profit exhibit signs of slowing down ...