The Silicon Valley giant plans to use TSMC's 3nm process for mass production by the latter half of 2025. Still, this rumour flies in the face of another Tame Apple Press leak claiming that Apple would steal a march on its rivals by performing all its AI antics on iPhones rather than the cloud.

A "Phone Chip Expert" on Weibo, with a self-proclaimed quarter-century of experience in the integrated circuit arena, has spilt the beans on Apple's intentions to manufacture this processor using TSMC's cutting-edge 3nm node.

This partnership with TSMC is set to exploit one of the most sophisticated semiconductor processes known to the tech world. It promises leaps in performance and energy efficiency that outstrip the former 5nm and 7nm nodes.

While whispers suggest Jobs' Mob is leaning towards on-device processing for its upcoming AI phones, it seems more likely that it is treading the more reliable and easier-to-attain cloud-based version of AI that has already been tested and used by its rivals.

The Weibo oracle has a track record of hitting the mark, including accurate forecasts about the iPhone 7's water resistance and the A15 Bionic chip's continued use in standard iPhone 14 models, leaving the A16 chip for the pricier iPhone 14 Pro variants.