--- title: "IBM and Siemens Team Up on 'Nanostack' Chips — What the Collaboration Actually Is (and Isn't)" slug: ibm-siemens-nanostack-collaboration-2026 category: tech category_label: "Tech" author: "BrainWavePost Staff" date: 2026-10-16 tags: ["IBM", "Siemens", "nanostack", "semiconductors", "EDA", "transistors", "chip manufacturing", "AI chips"] read_time_minutes: 7 canonical_url: https://brainwavepost.com/article/ibm-siemens-nanostack-collaboration-2026 source: BrainWavePost --- # IBM and Siemens Team Up on 'Nanostack' Chips — What the Collaboration Actually Is (and Isn't) *Tech · 2026-10-16 · BrainWavePost Staff · 7 min read* > IBM and Siemens announced a research collaboration to advance IBM's 3D 'nanostack' transistor design, pairing IBM's chip research with Siemens' design-and-simulation software. The partnership is real and notable — but it's a research/virtual-modeling effort, not a manufacturing ramp, and there's no production date yet. > **What this is — and what it isn't** _(note)_ > > The collaboration is real: on October 14, 2026, IBM and Siemens announced joint research to advance IBM's nanostack transistor architecture, combining IBM's semiconductor research with Siemens' electronic design automation (EDA) and simulation software. But it's a research and virtual-modeling partnership aimed at building the groundwork for future manufacturing — not an agreement to start commercial production. IBM itself says more advances are still needed before nanostack can be manufactured at scale, and no production date has been announced. [1][2][3] IBM and Siemens have announced a research collaboration to push IBM's 'nanostack' transistor architecture closer to real-world manufacturing. The announcement is genuine and the technology is significant — but it's worth being precise about the stage this is at, because 'accelerating commercial manufacturing' can imply that production is imminent. It isn't; this is foundational research and simulation work. [1][2] ## What nanostack is Nanostack is IBM's three-dimensional transistor architecture, built on nanosheet technology. Rather than laying transistors out side by side, it vertically stacks and staggers them, which dramatically increases how many fit in a given area. IBM unveiled the underlying sub-1-nanometer technology earlier in 2026. [2][4] - **7 angstrom** — the node the design targets (0.7 nm) [2][3] - **~100 billion** — transistors reported to fit in a fingernail-sized area [2] - **3D stacked** — vertically stacked and staggered nanosheet transistors [2][4] - **Oct 14, 2026** — date the IBM-Siemens collaboration was announced [1] > **Why '3D' matters** _(info)_ > > For decades, chipmakers improved density mainly by shrinking features on a flat plane. As that approach hits physical limits, stacking transistors vertically is one of the main ways to keep increasing density — which is the core idea behind nanostack. Reports describe it as roughly doubling transistor density compared with IBM's 2021 2nm nanosheet chips. [2] ## Who does what - IBM brings the semiconductor research and the nanostack device architecture itself. [1][2] - Siemens contributes electronic design automation (EDA), process simulation, lithography optimization and advanced manufacturing software. [1][2][3] - Together they plan to build detailed virtual models of nanostack to assess performance, optimize designs and identify fabrication challenges before physical chips are produced — aiming to shorten development cycles. [1][2] > Scaling into the angstrom era requires tightly coupled co-optimization across device physics, EDA design, manufacturing software and manufacturing — Ankur Gupta, Siemens' EVP of EDA IC Portfolio, who called IBM's 3D nanostack design a pivotal leap forward for silicon serving physical AI. [2][3] ## What the collaboration is for The near-term work is virtual: using Siemens' software to simulate and co-optimize the design and manufacturing process so that problems are found and solved in models rather than in expensive physical fabrication runs. The stated aim is to shorten development cycles and lay the manufacturing groundwork — a step toward eventual production of chips for AI and other demanding enterprise workloads, not production itself. [1][2] ## Where to be careful > **Two things to keep accurate** _(note)_ > > First, 'accelerate commercial manufacturing' overstates the immediate stage: this is research and simulation, IBM says more advances are needed before manufacturing at scale, and no production timeline has been given. Second, performance figures circulating alongside the news — such as '50% better performance or 70% lower power' and a '40% SRAM scaling' gain — trace to a secondary aggregator rather than IBM's own release, so treat them as unconfirmed until IBM publishes them directly. [1][5] ## What the evidence supports - IBM and Siemens announced a genuine research collaboration on nanostack on October 14, 2026. [1][2] - Nanostack is a 3D, vertically stacked nanosheet transistor architecture targeting the 7-angstrom (0.7nm) node. [2][3] - Siemens' role is EDA and simulation/manufacturing software; IBM's is the device research. [1][2] - The immediate work is virtual modeling to shorten development cycles — not a commercial production ramp, and no production date was announced. [1][2] - Specific performance percentages in circulation are not confirmed from IBM's own materials. [5] > **Editorial note** _(tip)_ > > This is technology journalism, not investment advice. Details reflect IBM's and Siemens' announcement and early reporting as of publication; roadmaps and figures for pre-production semiconductor research frequently change. ## Sources and further reading - [1] IBM Newsroom — 'IBM and Siemens Collaborate on Research to Advance Nanostack Architecture' (Oct 14, 2026): https://newsroom.ibm.com/2026-10-14-ibm-and-siemens-collaborate-on-research-to-advance-nanostack-architecture - [2] The Quantum Insider — 'IBM and Siemens Collaborate to Advance 3D Nanostack Transistors' (2026): https://thequantuminsider.com/2026/10/14/ibm-siemens-advance-3d-nanostack-transistors/ - [3] Tech Monitor — 'Siemens joins IBM research effort to develop nanostack technology' (2026): https://www.techmonitor.ai/news/siemens-joins-ibm-research-effort-to-develop-nanostack-technology - [4] IBM Newsroom — 'IBM Debuts World's First Sub-1 Nanometer Chip Technology' (Jun 25, 2026): https://newsroom.ibm.com/2026-06-25-ibm-debuts-worlds-first-sub-1-nanometer-chip-technology - [5] StockTitan — 'IBM and Siemens Collaborate on Research to Advance Nanostack' (2026): https://www.stocktitan.net/news/IBM/ibm-and-siemens-collaborate-on-research-to-advance-nanostack-8jesqmn9p43d.html --- _Canonical article: [https://brainwavepost.com/article/ibm-siemens-nanostack-collaboration-2026](https://brainwavepost.com/article/ibm-siemens-nanostack-collaboration-2026) — © BrainWavePost. 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