At a humanoid robotics summit in Tokyo in May 2026, I saw a consulting firm's global labor automation map for Physical AI. After returning, I recreated the same map using the firm's research on Digital AI job functions. Placing the two side by side revealed something unexpected.
Chinese contract-manufacturing giant Huaqin Technology expects its net profit for the first half of 2026 to rise between 53.5% and 61.5% year-over-year, to a range of CNY2.9 billion (approx. US$427.73 million) to CNY3.05 billion, according to a preliminary earnings pre-announcement filed with the Shanghai Stock Exchange on July 14. Revenue is projected to grow 10.8% to 13.2% to between CNY93 billion and CNY95 billion, up from CNY83.9 billion a year earlier. The company said the disclosure was triggered because net profit was set to rise more than 50%.
Six-inch silicon carbide (SiC) substrates, a third-generation semiconductor product that has faced oversupply and falling prices for the past two years, have clearly bottomed out and are even starting to recover as capacity remains constrained and demand emerges across multiple sectors. Semiconductor distributors say supply is now tight, and customers who want to buy more must pay more, with new orders becoming increasingly hard to absorb.
Trust technology company Gogolook reported June 2026 consolidated revenue of NT$110 million (approx. US$3.43 million), up 36.5% from a year earlier. Consolidated revenue for the second quarter of 2026 reached NT$310 million, an increase of 28.4% from the same period in 2025. Cumulative revenue for the first half of 2026 totaled NT$613 million, up 27.5% year over year. Both second-quarter and first-half figures reached record highs.
According to Counterpoint's latest market tracker, global smartphone shipments fell sharply in the second quarter of 2026, underscoring the memory crunch's impact on consumers, manufacturers, and retailers worldwide. Higher component costs, rising prices, and weaker demand in budget segments are now reshaping the market, with the disruption likely to influence availability, upgrade cycles, and handset pricing well beyond this year.
Intel is developing a new memory architecture aimed at challenging the dominance of high-bandwidth memory (HBM), with commercialization targeted for around 2030. Although the path is fraught with ecosystem barriers and compatibility hurdles, Intel's parallel development of Z-angle memory (ZAM) and cross-batch memory (XBM) underscores its determination to re-enter the DRAM market, as it simultaneously bets on AI compute and storage.
Liying said revenue reached a quarterly record of NT$108 million in the second quarter of 2026, crossing the NT$100 million (US$3.11 million) mark for the first time as strong demand for AI chips kept semiconductor utilization rates high. The company also reported record first-half revenue of NT$206 million, reflecting continued demand for its circular-economy services tied to waste hydrofluoric acid and calcium fluoride sludge.
US robotics startup Mantis Robotics, backed by Agility Robotics, has unveiled its MR-X dual-arm industrial robot and said it will target manufacturing, logistics, warehousing and smart factories. The planned rollout adds another robotics track for Agility Group as it broadens its artificial intelligence robotics strategy across multiple automation formats.
Aurotek Corp. said revenue in the second quarter and first half of 2026 reached record highs as demand from semiconductors and smart automation accelerated. The Taiwanese automation supplier said growth was driven by rising orders for subsystem integration, equipment and robotics tied to global foundry and advanced packaging expansion.
Taiwan's latest population policy push faced immediate skepticism despite a broad childcare package unveiled on May 27, while an Academia Sinica survey found only 12% of respondents believed the measures would encourage people to have and raise children. The package includes 18 measures and a universal "0 to 18 growth allowance" of NT$5,000 (US$155.36) per person per month.
Academia Sinica's Institute of Economics raised Taiwan's 2026 real GDP growth forecast to 10.16% on July 13, citing strong AI-related demand, exports, private investment and consumer spending. The revised outlook also pointed to a larger trade surplus and continued momentum in both external and domestic demand.
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