Largan chairman and CEO Adam Lin said October 2026 orders are tracking at roughly the same level as September's, but will begin declining in November as customers cut their forecasts after new phones went on sale. The comments signal that demand across the smartphone supply chain will weaken in the fourth quarter of 2026, creating challenges for handset chipmakers and other suppliers that performed strongly during the third quarter.
China's Biren Technology has successfully powered on its next-generation BR20X GPU, advancing to post-tapeout validation while preparing for customer sampling and mass production. The milestone advances its AI accelerator roadmap, though US export controls and manufacturing constraints remain major obstacles.
Sumitomo Bakelite announced that it is expanding production capacity for encapsulation materials used in advanced chip packaging at its facilities in Singapore and Suzhou, China. This is expected to approximately double its production capacity for mold underfill (MUF) materials and approximately triple that for compression-molding granules.
Hermes Testing Solutions (HTSI) reported September revenue of NT$514 million (US$16.10 million), up 2.35% month over month and 150.33% year over year, as shipments of customized products, membrane probe cards and cleaning materials increased. The wafer testing solutions provider said the results reflected rising demand for advanced testing capabilities supporting artificial intelligence (AI) and high-performance computing (HPC) chips.
As US defense procurement restrictions and European Union (EU) supply-chain due diligence requirements advance, South Korean risk-intelligence startup Helios is targeting verification needs in Taiwan and South Korea's AI, semiconductor, and defense industries. The company plans to bring public-information analysis and on-site verification services to Taiwan while strengthening maritime-threat analysis around the Taiwan Strait for corporate and national-security applications.
Samsung Electronics could overtake SK Hynix as the world's largest supplier of high-bandwidth memory (HBM) in 2027, as HBM4 prices climb and memory manufacturers compete for limited DRAM production capacity, according to forecasts presented at an October 6 semiconductor industry forum in Seoul.
Taiwan's exports hit a single-month record high of US$87.22 billion in September 2026, lifting the year-to-date total for the first nine months of the year to US$661.55 billion, according to customs import and export statistics released by Taiwan's Ministry of Finance (MOF) on October 8. Exports to the US totaled US$207.78 billion in the first nine months, a level the ministry called "unprecedented."
Taiwan's geothermal energy market could be approaching a major breakthrough as the semiconductor industry seeks new sources of reliable renewable electricity amid surging AI-driven power demand.
Apple's iPhone 18 Pro lineup is showing mixed demand signals weeks after launch. Reports of component order cuts suggest weaker-than-expected sales, while Chinese supply-chain sources point to stronger demand for the pricier Pro Max and foldable iPhone Duo. The divergence highlights growing pressure on Apple's premium strategy as rising memory costs drive smartphone prices higher.
The rapid expansion of AI infrastructure is driving demand for higher power and voltage levels, pushing power semiconductor development toward greater efficiency, higher power density, and tighter integration.
Touch IC leader Elan Microelectronics recently announced its September 2026 consolidated revenue of NT$602 million (approx. US$18.9 million), down 18.74% month-over-month and 46.9% year-over-year. Third-quarter revenue slid 30.7% quarter-over-quarter to NT$2.221 billion (US$69.6 million), down 33.0% year-over-year, marking a sharp decline during what is traditionally a peak season.
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