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Jun 12
TSMC hit by US patent suit, Taiwan ministry pledges support
TSMC has been drawn into a patent infringement complaint in the US by Ireland-based patent licensing firms Longitude Licensing and Marlin Semiconductor. The companies have claimed that the US government could block imports to the US of chips made by TSMC as a result of the case, and have enlisted several members of Congress to support their position, drawing market attention.
The global power semiconductor supply chain is undergoing another reshuffling, after Chinese chipmaker Nexperia triggered disruptions in 2025 and, more recently, China's Yangjie Technology was added to the European Union sanctions list.

Chunghwa Leading Photonics Tech, a subsidiary of Chunghwa Telecom, is set to list on the Taipei Emerging Stock Board. The company has recorded record-high revenue and gross margin in the first four months of 2026, boosted by rising demand in Industry 5.0 applications, advanced semiconductor process inspection, and AI data center optical communication. With short-wave infrared (SWIR) transmissive automated optical inspection (AOI) testing demand set to grow as CoWoS advanced packaging capacity expands, the company is highly optimistic about its prospects for the second half of the year, noting that AI-related demand will likely continue through 2028–2029.

Optical industry leaders Largan and Genius Electronic Optical (GSEO) have recently discussed progress in co-packaged optics (CPO), a key non-smartphone growth driver, and their strategies differ sharply. As customer demand and orders become clearer and more firmly secured, both companies have also turned markedly more confident, having taken a more cautious stance in prior quarters.

Samsung Electronics is set to hold its semiannual global strategy meeting from June 16 to 18, with executives expected to review a split operating environment: strong memory demand is supporting the chip business, while higher component costs are putting pressure on smartphones, PCs, and other consumer devices.

As cloud service providers ramp up investment in AI infrastructure, Edom chairman Wayne Tseng said rising costs for materials, production equipment and labour will keep overall market supply tight in the second half of 2026, with price increases likely to continue. He also said AI is moving from the cloud into enterprise applications, with power, cybersecurity, optics and the medical sector set to become four key growth areas.

Ten thousand attendees. One hundred and fifty speakers. Three exhibition floors. Two days. SuperAI Singapore 2026 generated enough keynote content, panel discussion, and product announcements to fill a week of coverage. But some of the most telling observations from the conference floor had nothing to do with any of it. Here is what I actually noticed.

Linkotech said its fan-out panel-level packaging rollout is showing early momentum, with certification from a North American low-Earth-orbit satellite communications customer and first equipment deliveries completed in the first half of 2026. The company said related sales could quickly rise to double digits as a share of annual revenue, with implications for supply chains worldwide.

India has expanded exemptions from mandatory quality certification requirements for imports by Special Economic Zone (SEZ) units and developers, a policy change that industry observers say could ease the establishment of semiconductor manufacturing facilities in the country.

ITE Tech said its embedded controller chip and HDMI 2.1 retimer have been adopted by a US agentic AI computing platform, with mass production expected as early as the second half of 2026. The win could ripple through global PC supply chains, as the company prepares to serve major brand customers and ODM partners worldwide.

SK Hynix is reviewing rare price increase requests from several tier-one equipment suppliers, a sign that the high-bandwidth memory boom is beginning to reshape pricing power in South Korea's semiconductor equipment supply chain.

During a panel discussion between executives and research experts from Bosch, Infineon, Rohm Semiconductor, Nexperia, Wolfspeed, and Omdia at PCIM Europe 2026, one reality was made clear: frictionless, globalized chip manufacturing is ending. While the conversation reflected industry enthusiasm for new applications such as AI servers and industrial motor drives, it was tempered by macroeconomic realities of international trade protectionism, regional resilience mandates, and aggressive tariffs.