The polished discs that every chip is built on are getting more expensive. A report from Taiwan’s CTEE projects polished 12-inch wafer prices climbing 40 percent in 2027, with standard epitaxial wafers up 15 to 25 percent over the same period.
In cash terms the report puts average wafer prices at about $92 this year, $122 in 2027 and $166 in 2028. Quarterly shipments are forecast to move from 11.9 million wafers to 16.1 million, then 21.7 million.
The supply base is narrow. GlobalWafers and SUMCO dominate raw wafer production, with most capacity sitting in Asia and Germany. A handful of suppliers therefore set the price of the starting material for the entire industry.
Behind the forecast sits a chain reaction. CoWoS advanced packaging output is expected to grow 70.9 percent next year, while demand for GPUs and custom AI accelerators rises about 44.9 percent. Every one of those parts consumes a blank wafer before a single transistor is patterned.
Spot prices for 12-inch wafers are already rising, which is nudging buyers toward long-term agreements that lock in today’s levels. Memory customers followed exactly that playbook as HBM tightened.
For chip designers the squeeze lands on top of foundry price increases already flagged for 2027. Materials have quietly become the third line on the AI bill.
