Explainer: Inside the $250M ASML Machine Powering Nvidia Chips

• ASML's EUV machines use 13-nanometer wavelength light to pattern circuitry on silicon wafers with unprecedented precision, blasting tin droplets 50,000 times per second with powerful lasers to generate the light
• Each machine requires 40 shipping containers and 747 cargo planes for delivery to customers including TSMC (Taiwan), Samsung and SK Hynix (South Korea), and Intel and Micron (U.S.)
• ASML shipped 44 EUV systems in 2025, with analysts forecasting significant production increases needed in 2026-2027 to meet AI chip demand

Summary: Inside ASML's $250M Chip Manufacturing Technology

Key Company and Market Position:

ASML, Europe's most valuable company, holds a monopoly on extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography systems—massive "chip printing" machines priced at $250 million each that are critical to advanced semiconductor manufacturing.

Technology Specifications:

The machines are the size of a school bus, weigh 150 tons, and operate at nanoscale precision with a 13-nanometer EUV wavelength (a human hair is 80,000-100,000 nanometers thick). They use powerful lasers to blast tin droplets 50,000 times per second, generating EUV light guided by ultra-precise mirrors from German supplier Zeiss. The wafer-holding table levitates on magnets and moves at 70-80 meters per second.

Key Suppliers:

German firms Trumpf (lasers) and Zeiss (optical systems) provide critical components for the machines.

Main Customers:

ASML's primary clients include TSMC (Taiwan)—which manufactures Nvidia's AI chips—along with Samsung and SK Hynix (South Korea), Intel and Micron (U.S.), and Rapidus (Japan).

Market Drivers:

Surging AI development and global data center expansion have accelerated demand for advanced semiconductors, making AI chip production ASML's top business priority.

Production and Delivery:

EUV systems are assembled in the Netherlands, packed into approximately 40 containers, and transported via 747 cargo planes. ASML shipped 44 systems in the previous year, with analysts forecasting significant volume increases required in 2026-2027.

Competitive Landscape:

Despite ASML's monopoly, rivals in China and the U.S. are attempting to develop alternative technologies, though no viable competitors currently exist for EUV systems essential to cutting-edge chip manufacturing.