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Tuesday 21 April 2026
Qualcomm Chief reportedly seeks memory and manufacturing deals in South Korea

Qualcomm Chief Executive Cristiano Amon is expected to meet senior executives from Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix during a recent visit to South Korea, according to industry sources. The discussions are expected to focus on securing memory supplies as well as potential cooperation with Samsung in advanced semiconductor manufacturing, including its 2nm foundry process.

Tuesday 21 April 2026
Taiwan has more than 260,000 job vacancies, with manufacturing accounting for 32.4%
Taiwan's artificial intelligence (AI) servers and advanced-process chip manufacturing businesses are booming, with related manufacturing industries also benefiting. According to a survey by Taiwan's Ministry of Labor (MIL), labor turnover rates in the manufacturing industry are relatively low, while vacancy rates and recruitment periods are comparable to the overall industry average, indicating a stable workforce structure.
Tuesday 21 April 2026
AI demand inflates silicon valuations across TSMC, Nvidia supply chain
"Silicon inflation" is no longer a metaphor — it is reshaping Taiwan's capital markets. TSMC and Nvidia are at the center, pulling growth across the entire electronics supply chain. Global uncertainties remain, yet Taiwan's market is outperforming.
Tuesday 21 April 2026
Google's AI chip push targets inference boom as battle with Nvidia enters new phase

Google is accelerating its push into the AI chip market, positioning its custom tensor processing units (TPUs) as a viable alternative to Nvidia's dominant GPUs—particularly as the industry shifts from training large models to running them in real-world applications.

Tuesday 21 April 2026
Middle East transshipment and supply chain shifts double SE Asia freight rates
Given the US-China trade war, many Taiwanese businesses and Chinese manufacturers relocated production lines to Southeast Asia, boosting shipment demand from the region. Now, escalating conflict in the Middle East has driven up fuel costs, while international cargo flights are being diverted or crowded into Southeast Asian routes. This phenomenon is causing air freight rates to double.
Tuesday 21 April 2026
Analysis: Amazon's 11-year chip journey crowns Anthropic and OpenAI as top Trainium customers
Amazon CEO Andy Jassy declared in his latest shareholder letter that the company's self-developed chip business is booming, surpassing US$15 billion in annualized AI revenue through AWS — a significant milestone for chip efforts that have quietly evolved over 11 years, beginning with the acquisition of Israeli startup Annapurna Labs in 2015.
Tuesday 21 April 2026
Foxconn Industrial Internet to mass-produce CPO all-optical switches in 3Q26 with over 10,000 units target
Brand Cheng, chairman of Foxconn Industrial Internet (FII), a cloud networking business under Foxconn, recently announced ongoing advancements in technologies, including co-packaged optics (CPOs), liquid cooling, power architectures, and PCB technology. Notably, FII completed prototype shipments of its CPO all-optical switch in the first quarter of 2026 and plans to begin mass production starting in the third quarter of 2026.
Monday 20 April 2026
Analysis: How TSMC avoids memory's boom-and-bust cycle
Ahead of TSMC's earnings call, DIGITIMES senior analyst Luke Lin explained that TSMC typically does not revise its full-year revenue forecast or capital expenditure during its first-quarter earnings announcement. If adjustments are needed, TSMC usually waits until July. That is when second-quarter results and third-quarter guidance are released, giving the company a firmer basis for any revisions.
Monday 20 April 2026
AI boom lifts Taiwan's chip testing firms to record 1Q26
As artificial intelligence chips increasingly migrate to advanced manufacturing nodes, the complexity — and duration — of semiconductor testing is rising sharply. That shift is fueling surging demand for Taiwan's test interface suppliers, whose businesses are climbing in tandem with the AI boom.
Monday 20 April 2026
India notifies Dholera chip SEZ, signaling diversification of global semiconductor supply chain
India's notification of a special economic zone in Dholera for the country's first chip fabrication plant marks a potential turning point in global semiconductor supply chains, promising a new manufacturing hub that could attract investment, create skilled jobs, and reduce import dependence — part of a broader international effort to diversify electronics production worldwide.
Monday 20 April 2026
Naura revenue climbs on China chip tool demand, margins tighten amid rising costs and competition
China semiconductor equipment maker Naura Technology delivered strong 2025 revenue growth on rising chip tool demand and domestic substitution, but weaker margins and intensifying competition signal a tougher next phase.
Monday 20 April 2026
South Korea's DeepX moves DX-M1 AI chip into mass production; builds up inventory to address supply constraints
South Korean AI semiconductor startup DeepX has entered mass production and supply for its in-house neural processing unit (NPU), the DX-M1, as it seeks to scale revenue amid tightening wafer capacity and rising memory costs. The company said it has secured more than 30 purchase orders and is targeting US$40 million in revenue in 2026, supported by demand for low-power, cost-efficient AI chips.
Monday 20 April 2026
Taiwan's high growth and low inflation stand out amidst global economic downturn
As global research institutions downgrade their economic forecasts for 2026 in the wake of the joint US-Israel strikes on Iran, Taiwan has stood out as a rare exception to the worldwide downturn. Even with oil and natural gas prices surging amid shipping disruptions through the Strait of Hormuz, Taiwan's economy grew by 13.19% in the first quarter of 2026, following an impressive 8.68% growth in 2025. Meanwhile, consumer price index (CPI) inflation is expected to stay at a low 1.98%, thanks to government intervention.
Monday 20 April 2026
Wooptix advances testing and production capabilities in targeting entry into leading foundries by 2028
Spanish optical inspection startup Wooptix officially unveiled its first inspection system, Phemet, in November 2025. The company stated that its first-generation prototype has already undergone testing and collaboration with European research institutions and major wafer manufacturers. Moving forward, the system will be further refined based on customer requirements.
Monday 20 April 2026
Odisha to break ground on India's first advanced 3D chip packaging unit
Odisha broke ground on India's first advanced 3D chip packaging unit on April 19, 2026, a move that could reshape global semiconductor supply chains by adding high-end heterogeneous integration capacity in South Asia, attracting investment for aerospace, defense, artificial intelligence (AI), 5G, and data center applications, and creating jobs.
Monday 20 April 2026
Commentary: Spain's IC design ecosystem revives as EU chip sovereignty demand grows
Amid rising geopolitical tensions linked to semiconductors, European countries and industries are increasingly anxious about semiconductor autonomy. This concern has empowered many European chip startups to believe that local computing demands can sustain homegrown firms. Spanish companies Semidynamics and Openchip see this opportunity as a key foundation for growth in the coming years.
Monday 20 April 2026
Samsung tests domestic EUV masks to cut Japan reliance at 4nm

Samsung Electronics has begun testing domestic EUV blank masks in its 4nm foundry production line, a shift aimed at cutting reliance on Japanese suppliers and tightening control over critical chipmaking materials.

Monday 20 April 2026
Cerebras revives IPO bid as AI boom fuels growth and high-profile partnerships

Cerebras Systems has renewed its push to go public, filing for an initial public offering (IPO) after shelving an earlier attempt amid regulatory scrutiny and shifting market conditions. The AI chipmaker and data center operator, headquartered in California, is seeking to capitalize on surging demand for AI infrastructure as hyperscalers ramp up spending.

Monday 20 April 2026
Weekly news roundup: Samsung launches voluntary retirement; Qualcomm moves into custom DRAM with CXMT
Below are the most-read DIGITIMES Asia stories from the week of April 13-19, 2026:
Monday 20 April 2026
As 2D NAND fades, UMC faces steep hurdles to enter a shrinking market

The global retreat from 2D NAND flash production is no longer a possibility but an emerging certainty. As major memory makers exit the segment, tightening supply has driven a sharp surge in prices for low-capacity chips. Recent market chatter suggests that United Microelectronics Corporation (UMC) could receive foundry orders for SLC and MLC flash, a move that, if realized, might disrupt what is shaping up to be an increasingly concentrated supply landscape.

Monday 20 April 2026
Canary Islands push into semiconductors, build on space tech base

The Canary Islands, an Atlantic archipelago off northwest Africa, have long been defined by tourism rather than technology.

Monday 20 April 2026
Samsung files injunction to prevent union from occupying chip facilities
Samsung Electronics has taken legal action amid escalating labor disputes with its union, filing for an injunction at a South Korean court on April 16, 2026, to prevent the union from illegally occupying key semiconductor facilities. Halting chip production at the company's facilities could have ramifications for global semiconductor supplies.
Sunday 19 April 2026
Corning leads glass substrate race as South Korea's KCC and LX Glass face steep challenges
Glass core substrates, valued for their low dielectric loss and warpage reduction, are key to next-generation advanced semiconductor packaging. In South Korea, traditional glass makers KCC Glass and LX Glass have entered R&D efforts to capture market opportunities.
Sunday 19 April 2026
Kemflo strengthens water resilience for semiconductor fabs
As the global electronics and advanced semiconductor manufacturing sectors expand in 2026, the stability of semiconductor and electronics plant utilities systems has become critical to meeting new factory construction schedules. Kemflo Group CEO Eugene Lin pointed out that, leveraging its integrated strengths across water resources, industrial water treatment, and metal products, Kemflo is establishing itself as an indispensable high-end water treatment partner amid labor shortages in plant operations.
Sunday 19 April 2026
ASE's CoPos advanced packaging accelerates as Skytech and CMIt boost equipment deliveries
AI and high-performance computing (HPC) are driving increasingly stringent chip performance demands, marking a pivotal shift in advanced packaging technology from traditional wafers to large-size panels. Semiconductor equipment leader Skytech's CEO George Yi announced that its self-developed 310x310mm panel-level packaging physical vapor deposition (PLP PVD) system, a world first, has completed delivery and been successfully integrated into production lines at major OSAT firms including ASE Technology Holding.