As hardware demands for artificial intelligence continue to surge, beyond increased size and complexity in chip packaging, advanced packaging substrates face mounting challenges: larger package footprints, higher layer counts, lower warpage, and higher accuracy. However, relying solely on incremental upgrades to traditional manufacturing processes is hitting a physical wall. This bottleneck is compelling the industry to evaluate next-generation core layer materials.
Nvidia reportedly struck a US$6 billion deal with startup Poolside to license its technology and hire much of its staff. The technology and personnel will reportedly support the chipmaker's Nemotron models in a bid to compete with China's strength in open-source models, but the deal also puts Nvidia in competition with some of its biggest customers.
Samsung Electronics' DRAM wafer capacity will grow only marginally through 2027, with investment directed at node migration and line conversions rather than aggressive wafer-capacity expansion, according to Omdia data obtained by Chosun Biz.
Rising concerns over potential supply chain chokepoints for critical raw materials have driven the formation of the SEMI Taiwan Materials Alliance. Wei-Wang Chen, General Manager of Everlight Chemical and Chairman of the Taiwan Chemical Industry Association (TCIA), noted that Taiwan boasts the world's largest tier-one customer demand alongside the most stringent process specifications. This unique position, he stated, presents a "once-in-a-century golden opportunity" for local semiconductor material development.
Competition in high bandwidth memory (HBM) is shifting from raw memory performance to advanced packaging. As bandwidth, capacity and stack heights keep climbing, thermal management, power consumption and packaging have emerged as the new bottlenecks. At Hot Chips 2026, SK Hynix laid out its advanced packaging roadmap in detail, moving from hybrid bonding to Intel's EMIB and ultimately toward 3D integration.
SK Hynix is moving on several fronts as it pushes deeper into system-level memory competition. From high-bandwidth memory (HBM) and high-bandwidth flash (HBF) to a recently published roadmap proposing to extend co-packaged optics (CPO) to the memory interface, the company increasingly appears to be competing not just over the next generation of HBM, but over how future artificial intelligence (AI) systems organize and access memory.
Rapidus' plan to begin volume production of 2nm chips in the second half of FY2027 remains on schedule, with rising demand from AI chips and data centers providing a stronger-than-expected tailwind, CEO Atsuyoshi Koike told Reuters.
Fujifilm has completed a new production building at its Oita Factory in Japan to make post-CMP cleaners, expanding capacity for materials used in advanced semiconductors amid rising global demand for AI chips. For readers worldwide, the move underscores how chip supply chains are adapting to support data centers, connected devices, and next-generation computing.
India is preparing a new capex-based subsidy scheme to support domestic polysilicon manufacturing, as the government seeks to reduce import dependence and build a more integrated solar supply chain.
Prices for some Nvidia-based server systems due for delivery in 2027 are set to rise by more than 15%, with certain flagship configurations increasing about 17%, as higher memory and other component costs feed through to next-generation data center infrastructure.
SEMI launched a semiconductor materials alliance on August 21, bringing together more than 400 companies to build a more resilient and competitive supply chain as Taiwan extends its position as the world's largest semiconductor materials consumer for a 16th straight year.
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