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Sep 11
Oracle's AI cloud build-out is now rewriting its cost structure

Oracle has passed the point where its artificial-intelligence infrastructure business is large enough to reshape the company's entire income statement. Revenue for the quarter ended August 31, 2026, rose 30% to US$19.3 billion, the company said on September 10, and every headline growth rate was strong. The more consequential shift sits one line lower, in what it now costs Oracle to deliver that revenue.

China's humanoid robot boom is entering a harder phase. After years of headline-grabbing demonstrations and heavy private funding, companies are being pressed to prove something less theatrical but more consequential: that robots can perform reliable work, generate recurring revenue, and justify their valuations.

We previously discussed how automation removes environmental uncertainty, while autonomy requires systems to operate in complex settings. The biggest difference is that autonomous robots must enter unstructured environments and get work done, knowing where they are, what surrounds them, and how to move safely and efficiently while carrying out tasks.
Taiwan's Ministry of Finance on September 9 said electronic parts exports reached US$32.22 billion in August 2026, a record monthly high, rising US$11.83 billion, or 58%, from the same month in 2025. Integrated circuits rose US$11.55 billion, up 60%, while printed circuit boards increased US$140 million, up nearly 30%.
AI server tracker: Taiwan optics race beyond 1.6T
Sep 13, 08:22

Taiwan's optical communications supply chain is entering a more consequential phase of the AI infrastructure cycle. Demand is broadening beyond conventional pluggable transceivers toward continuous-wave (CW) lasers, fiber array units (FAUs), external laser sources and co-packaged optics (CPO), while transmission speeds advance from 800G and 1.6T toward 3.2T and beyond.

Changs Ascending Enterprise (CAEC) said some shipments of lithium iron phosphate battery systems used in semiconductor uninterruptible power supply equipment were delayed after customers adjusted plant expansion schedules, and heavy rain in southern Taiwan slowed delivery and acceptance. August 2026 revenue fell from July, but still ranked as the second-highest August on record.

The concept of corporate cybersecurity used to begin at the so-called perimeter, with firewalls guarding network entry points, email gateways filtering out suspicious messages, and antivirus software blocking malware. This wall-building mindset at the perimeter worked reasonably well when corporate information systems were relatively closed.

Much of the industry attention surrounding AI infrastructure buildouts is now inextricably tied to sheer compute power, with market dominance or competitiveness defined largely by the highest-performing GPUs or the fastest construction.

Asustek Computer (Asus) has been accelerating the integration of AI, hardware, software, and cloud technologies into healthcare as it builds a next-generation smart healthcare ecosystem. Kuo-Hao Huang, vice president of the Asus AI Research Center, said the biggest challenge hospitals face in adopting AI is not the AI models themselves, but whether their data, workflows, and system architectures are ready.

Taiwan's power and energy companies are looking to grow their presence in Europe. To support that push, the Chinese International Economic Cooperation Association (CIECA) organized the "2026 Taiwan Economic and Trade Delegation to France," a 25-member group of representatives from domestic industry groups and energy and power companies, which traveled to Paris from September 5 to 13 to discuss trade and investment opportunities centered on grid upgrades and energy security and resilience.

Pegatron reported consolidated revenue of NT$88.31 billion (approx. US$2.8 billion) in August 2026, up 2.66% from the previous month and 34.11% from a year earlier, supported by its information and communications technology businesses. The company expects stronger second-half shipments, led by expanding server volumes and the launch of Apple's iPhone 18 series, with the fourth quarter likely to mark the seasonal peak.

Apple has finally unveiled the long-anticipated foldable iPhone Duo, with former CEO Tim Cook making a brief appearance at the start of the launch video. The moment suggested the device was Cook's farewell act, rather than John Ternus' first turn as chief executive, even as Apple used the 2026 fall event to frame its next stage of AI strategy.