The global memory industry is confronting a growing capacity crunch, one that is increasingly rippling upstream to a shortage of glass fiber cloth, an obscure but indispensable material in advanced semiconductor packaging.
The global memory industry entered a clear upturn in the second half of 2025 as both spot and contract prices rose sharply, lifting earnings across Taiwan's memory supply chain and pushing operating performance to cyclical highs in the fourth quarter.
As global governments accelerate investments in the semiconductor sector, Japan's Rapidus is moving forward with its goal of mass-producing 2nm AI chips. The company maintains that its primary concern is not a potential surplus of capacity, but rather structural constraints, specifically a significant shortage of skilled professionals.
GlobalFoundries said on January 13 that it has agreed to acquire the ARC Processor IP Solutions business from Synopsys, a move that modestly broadens the foundry's exposure to processor IP and so-called "physical AI" workloads.
