In the final days before the Lunar New Year, a series of high-resolution satellite images began circulating on Taiwanese social media. They showed Barcelona Airport, Tokyo's National Stadium, Taiwan's coastline, science parks, and ports.

The 2026 US National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), signed at the end of 2025, introduces significant new business prospects for Taiwanese companies by emphasizing Taiwan's security and cooperation in defense procurement. Key provisions include a US$1 billion Taiwan security cooperation initiative and authorization for the US Department of Defense (DoD) to establish a joint unmanned systems program with Taiwan starting March 1, 2026, focusing on co-developing drones and counter-drone technologies.

US President Donald Trump has requested a fiscal year 2027 defense budget of US$1.5 trillion. This represents a nearly 50% increase from fiscal year 2026's roughly US$1 trillion. Trump's goal is clear: rebuild a strong military. Experts expect the budget to significantly boost procurement for expanded naval fleets, advanced aircraft, and new nuclear missile programs.

For Taiwan, the threat of a Chinese blockade is not merely military — it is industrial. Beijing's tightening grip on global technology supply chains has made clear that any conflict could sever the island's access to the materials and components its defense sector depends on. Taipei's response is to build a defense industry that can sustain itself from within.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk has announced the merger of xAI and SpaceX, creating a new entity valued at an astonishing US$1.25 trillion. However, some have raised concerns that this bold strategic move may prove to be a financial yoke on SpaceX, especially since, from a technical standpoint, it makes more sense to merge xAI with Tesla than with SpaceX.

Taiwan's first domestically developed satellite constellation, Formosat-8, has begun returning detailed images of Earth, marking a milestone in the island's push to expand its presence in the global space industry.

Globe Telecom stated that it will be the first operator in Southeast Asia to offer direct-to-cell satellite connectivity, becoming the second Asian carrier to collaborate with SpaceX on satellite data communications, following Japan's KDDI.

Tesla is expanding simultaneously into self-driving vehicles, artificial intelligence robots, and energy infrastructure. Elon Musk has outlined plans to build US solar manufacturing capacity capable of producing 100 gigawatts annually within three years. The move has ignited an interplanetary contest spanning energy, geopolitics, and intellectual property.

Taiwanese shipbuilding company CSBC expects to return to profitability in 2026 as its full-year 2025 revenue rebounded significantly, aligning with its operational plans despite ongoing losses. The company highlighted the momentum from Taiwan's indigenous defense shipbuilding program, including the recent fourth submerged test of the CSBC-built Hai Kun-class defense submarine off the coast of the southern Taiwanese city of Kaohsiung, with production schedules extending through 2038, underpinning long-term growth.

At the Singapore Space Summit 2026, MediaTek joined Airbus, Singapore-based technology firm ST Engineering iDirect, and electronic test-and-measurement company Keysight Technologies in signing a memorandum of understanding to collaborate on the research and development of 5G and 6G non-terrestrial networks (NTN).