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Wednesday 8 October 2025
With Intel partnership, Nvidia raises stakes in processor war

Recent market developments—such as Nvidia's capital infusion into Intel and AMD's approach to Intel for packaging deals—have yet to rock the current PC processor market. But they're already expanding the contours of what's possible.

Wednesday 8 October 2025
India approves NaMo Semiconductor Lab at IIT Bhubaneswar
Union Minister for Electronics and Information Technology Ashwini Vaishnaw has approved the establishment of the NaMo Semiconductor Laboratory at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bhubaneswar, a move aimed at strengthening India's talent base in semiconductor design, manufacturing, and packaging.
Tuesday 7 October 2025
Upstream substrate and leadframe price hikes pressure IC packaging costs
Since early 2025, rising costs of precious metals such as gold and silver have triggered price increase signals in the supply chain for key materials like substrates and leadframes used in the IC packaging industry. Market watchers expect these cost pressures to shift downstream to packaging companies, potentially impacting customer pricing.
Tuesday 7 October 2025
Japan to expand export controls on dual-use technologies from October 9
Japan will expand export controls to cover general-purpose machine tools, integrated circuits, drones, radar, navigation, and testing equipment, requiring companies to verify potential military use. The new rules, effective October 9, 2025, broaden oversight beyond UN arms embargo countries to most global destinations, including China and Southeast Asia.
Tuesday 7 October 2025
Taiwan's silicon shield under siege as US accelerates chip onshoring
A US proposal to evenly split advanced semiconductor production between Taiwan and the United States has sparked deep concern in the industry and triggered a political debate in Taipei, as questions arise over cost, national security, and the future of global supply chains.
Tuesday 7 October 2025
TSMC, Samsung components still found in Huawei's Ascend 910C
Semiconductor intelligence firm TechInsights has concluded, following a teardown of Huawei Technologies' Ascend 910C chip, that some of the components still come from Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), Samsung Electronics, and SK Hynix. The analysis showed that the chip die for the Ascend 910C was produced by TSMC and used high-bandwidth memory 2 enhanced (HBM2E) supplied by Samsung and SK Hynix.
Tuesday 7 October 2025
China's SiC industry finds high-value exit in Meta's AR supply chain

As the global semiconductor industry eyes the rise of 12-inch silicon carbide (SiC) wafers as potential game-changers in advanced packaging, a surprising development is reshaping the conversation. A Chinese startup has reportedly discovered a high-value application for large-diameter SiC substrates—one that directly aligns with the supply chain of tech giant Meta's AI-powered smart glasses.

Tuesday 7 October 2025
Weekly news roundup: Intel and TSMC pour billions into Arizona; Memory chip prices soar, Hanmi expands to Singapore to support Micron
Below are the most-read DIGITIMES Asia stories from the week of September 29–October 5.
Monday 6 October 2025
India roundup: Number of Apple suppliers in India likely reaches 45
Despite bottlenecks, including culture, Taiwan-India bilateral ties are expanding. The number of Apple suppliers in India is likely to reach 45 amid production diversification.
Monday 6 October 2025
Potential Intel-AMD partnership reshapes semiconductor landscape
US chip manufacturers Intel and AMD are negotiating foundry cooperation, which could bring structural changes to the global semiconductor industry. Besides potentially boosting Intel's foundry business, this also represents a pragmatic move aligned with US government industrial policies and major tech companies.
Monday 6 October 2025
Mitsubishi Electric opens SiC plant amid cooling EV market
Mitsubishi Electric held a completion ceremony on October 1, 2025, for its new power semiconductor factory in Kumamoto Prefecture, Japan. The facility will produce silicon carbide (SiC) power semiconductors, primarily targeting the electric vehicle (EV) market. However, the company has delayed expected growth targets amid slower-than-anticipated EV demand, with capacity expansion now set to proceed gradually based on market conditions.
Monday 6 October 2025
Nvidia's stake in Intel raises PC supply chain concerns
Acer chairman and CEO Jason Chen stated that if people focus on how Nvidia's investment in Intel impacts TSMC, they are missing the point. For PC brands, the more pressing concern is the new variables this move introduces. With potentially more than two x86 CPU suppliers and multiple generations of processors in play, future procurement and inventory management for PC brands will become significantly more complex.
Monday 6 October 2025
Gold and copper prices soar as Trump's policies shake global supply chains
Upon US President Donald Trump's return to the White House, his chip containment policy has ignited a rare earth export control battle with China, affecting the already imbalanced supply and demand for key AI server materials. US federal government shutdowns have further driven up gold and other precious metals to record highs, testing component makers' ability to manage costs.
Monday 6 October 2025
Amkor breaks ground on Arizona packaging facility near TSMC
US-based semiconductor packaging and test services provider Amkor Technology announced it will hold a groundbreaking ceremony on October 6, 2025, to officially begin construction of its new advanced packaging and testing facility in Peoria, Arizona. The plant is scheduled to begin operations in early 2028. Upon completion, the plant will become the largest outsourced advanced packaging and testing site in the US.
Friday 3 October 2025
ASE Technology launches new factory in Kaohsiung to expand advanced semiconductor packaging
ASE Technology Holding has initiated construction of a new K18B factory at the Nanzi Science Park in Kaohsiung to address growing demand in artificial intelligence (AI), automotive electronics, and high-performance computing sectors. The facility will focus on CoWoS and final testing, with an investment of NT$17.6 billion (approx. US$579 million) and plans to begin operations by the first quarter of 2028.
Friday 3 October 2025
Industrial clusters are key to Taiwan-US high-tech partnership
After returning to Taiwan, Executive Yuan Vice Premier Cheng Li-chun provided updates on the status of Taiwan-US economic and trade negotiations, particularly addressing the contentious issue of a 50-50 manufacturing split raised by US officials. While Taiwan has not agreed to such a proposal, Cheng suggested the government remains open to collaboration that could assist the US chip manufacturing effort, fueling speculation about potential flexibility in Taiwan's stance.
Friday 3 October 2025
India joins XR optics race with Kaynes-DigiLens waveguide line
Kaynes Technology has opened India's first waveguide manufacturing line in Mysuru in partnership with US-based DigiLens, placing the country in the global supply chain for extended reality (XR) and defense optics.
Friday 3 October 2025
Mature chip pricing squeeze deepens for UMC as Taiwan IC design houses foresee challenges lasting into 2026
United Microelectronics Corp. (UMC) recently issued a notice to its suppliers demanding a 15% price reduction, signaling heightened cost pressures within the semiconductor supply chain. While some analysts interpret this as a strategic negotiation move rather than a firm mandate, the demand underscores UMC's urgent efforts to lower production costs amid challenging market conditions.
Friday 3 October 2025
Nvidia's Taiwan HQ faces hurdles as Acer and Asus founders see US-Taiwan science park potential
Nvidia's plan to establish its Taiwan headquarters in the Northern Science Park has recently encountered contract issues, prompting concerns that Nvidia might seek alternative locations. Acer founder Stan Shih stressed that Taiwan's excessive anti-corruption culture hampers progress and called for prioritizing a cooperative culture to boost Taiwan's competitiveness.
Friday 3 October 2025
Taiwan pushes back on US '50-50 chip split' demand
Taiwan's Executive Yuan Vice Premier Cheng Li-chun highlighted on October 2, 2025, that the US's proposal for a "50-50 chip production split" between Taiwan and the US diverges from Taiwan's established semiconductor supply chain cooperation model. She clarified that Taiwan's approach entails enterprises leading semiconductor industry planning, with the government providing credit guarantees and financial support—a strategy that cannot be altered to meet the US's equal production demands.
Friday 3 October 2025
Commentary: UMC's steep price cuts could backfire, driving suppliers to advanced nodes
United Microelectronics Corp. (UMC) is demanding its upstream materials suppliers cut prices by at least 15%, a rare and aggressive move that has sent shockwaves through the semiconductor industry. The chipmaker issued a formal notice requiring partners to submit cost-reduction plans within one month. The new pricing is scheduled to take effect on January 1, 2026.
Friday 3 October 2025
Applied Materials warns of revenue hit from expanded US export blacklist
Applied Materials has warned that new US export restrictions will weigh heavily on its business, underscoring the risks American chip-equipment makers face from Washington's widening crackdown on technology ties with China.
Friday 3 October 2025
SAS subsidiary signs 10-year green power deal with Amkor
Amid the semiconductor supply chain's ongoing push for green transformation, Sustainable Energy Solution, a renewable power sales company under the Sino-American Silicon Products (SAS) group, held a signing ceremony on October 2 with global advanced packaging and testing services supplier Amkor Technology for a 10-year corporate power purchase agreement (CPPA).
Friday 3 October 2025
Taiwan's economy hits new heights on semiconductor, AI, and green infrastructure strengths
Taiwan is set to surpass South Korea in per capita GDP a year ahead of schedule, reaching the US$40,000 target by 2026. This is fueled by record-breaking exports, robust semiconductor and AI industries, and proactive energy and infrastructure initiatives. Despite global uncertainties, the island's economy demonstrates remarkable resilience and strategic foresight.
Friday 3 October 2025
Hyundai Mobis to mass-produce domestically developed automotive semiconductors from 2026
Hyundai Mobis has announced plans to begin mass production of automotive semiconductors developed in collaboration with over 20 domestic companies and research institutes starting in 2026, aiming to launch more than 10 products within two to three years. The move marks the first time the South Korean auto parts giant has publicly shared concrete development milestones and timelines for such a wide-ranging joint effort.