Samsung Electronics will no longer hold its customary Samsung Foundry Forum (SFF) in 2025, opting instead to host partner-exclusive events, drawing attention from industry observers. This move is interpreted as part of Samsung Semiconductor's strategy to emphasize "strengthening internal capabilities."

Strong demand for high performance computing (HPC) and generative AI (GenAI) has helped drive a 75% year-over-year revenue increase in the IC sector across Taiwan's science parks in April 2025, leading all industrial categories in the parks, according to data from the Science Park Bureaus under the National Science and Technology Council (NSTC). Science and Technology Minister and Minister without Portfolio Cheng-wen Wu believes Taiwan should leverage its semiconductor and AI expertise through tight integration with the biomedical industry, to foster practical applications of AI in biotech and medicine.

Fueled by booming global demand for Nvidia's GB200 chips—and the anticipated launch of the more powerful GB300 in the second half of 2025—Taiwan's semiconductor manufacturing sector is experiencing a rapid surge in revenue, particularly in the country's southern science parks. Recent data from Taiwan's National Science and Technology Council (NSTC), released in June 2025, shows that the Southern Taiwan Science Park generated NT$285.3 billion (US$9.8 billion) in revenue in April 2025—nearly three times the NT$109.6 billion recorded by the Central Taiwan Science Park.

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang has recently warned multiple times that the Trump administration may further tighten US export controls, inadvertently allowing Chinese domestic AI chips, such as those from Huawei, to fully capture the China market. AI chips can be divided into training and inference segments, with Nvidia historically dominating the high-barrier AI training chip sector in China.

Intel's upcoming Nova Lake-S Desktop CPUs are stirring excitement across the tech industry, with early reports hinting at significant performance leaps. Leaked slides from the company suggest the chips could deliver more than a 10% increase in single-threaded performance and a remarkable 60% boost in multi-threaded performance, positioning Intel's next-generation processors as top contenders for leadership in gaming performance and overall efficiency.

As China accelerates domestic semiconductor self-sufficiency and backs foundries like SMIC, Taiwan-based United Microelectronics Corporation (UMC) faces rising pressure in the mature-node segment. In a bid to stay competitive, UMC is reportedly weighing entry into 6nm production—a move that has drawn scrutiny, given that its most tangible progress at advanced nodes remains a 12nm partnership with Intel, still several years from mass production.

As the July 9, 2025 deadline approaches for the expiration of the United States' temporary suspension of "reciprocal tariffs," US President Donald Trump appears to be shifting his trade focus toward Asia, following a recent victory in persuading NATO allies to increase defense spending.

Doris Hsu, chairperson of Sino-American Silicon Products Group (SAS), indicated that the US government is likely to take about 90 days to reach a decision regarding semiconductor tariffs. This suggests a resolution could be announced by the end of the third quarter of 2025, before summer concludes.

Wolfspeed, a global leader in silicon carbide technologies, announced on June 30, 2025, that it has made continued progress in executing its previously announced Restructuring Support Agreement (RSA). The agreement has received backing from key stakeholders, including holders of more than 97% of its senior secured notes, Renesas Electronics' wholly owned US subsidiary, and convertible debtholders holding more than 67% of the outstanding convertible notes.

Under pressure from low-cost competition in China, many application sectors are struggling to turn a profit. Recently, the compound semiconductor gallium nitride (GaN) industry has seen reports of major manufacturers experiencing fatigue and reduced willingness to invest, even considering more aggressive strategies. This could trigger sectoral shifts within the "non-China GaN supply chain."

US semiconductor giant Nvidia has recruited two leading artificial intelligence (AI) specialists from China as part of its ongoing efforts to broaden its research team, according to a report by the South China Morning Post on June 29.

South Korean memory giant SK Hynix expects its operating income to reach nearly KRW9 trillion (US$6.6 billion) in the second quarter of 2025, thanks to the strong growth of high bandwidth memory (HBM).

Samsung Electronics has secured a broad license to a portfolio of semiconductor patents originally developed by Intel, a move industry analysts view as both a defensive strategy against potential litigation and a step toward strengthening its global technological competitiveness.

China is poised to overtake Taiwan as the world's top semiconductor foundry hub by 2030, according to Yole Group. With 21% of global capacity in 2024 and rapid domestic expansion underway, China's rise highlights shifting power in a fragmented, strategically charged chip manufacturing landscape.

Samsung is pushing its second-generation 2nm process, SF2P, promising notable performance and efficiency gains. As its chip business faces mounting pressure, the company is betting on advanced AI and mobile applications to revive its foundry momentum and attract major clients amid stalled 3nm adoption and scaled-back capital investment.

CoAsia, a Taiwan-based semiconductor company, announced that its subsidiary, CoAsia SEMI, will partner with Rebellions, a South Korean AI chipmaker, to co-develop a next-generation Processing-In-Memory (PIM) server-grade semiconductor as part of a national-level research and development initiative led by South Korea.

IBM is seeking a long-term partnership with Japan's Rapidus to develop sub-1nm chips, according to Yomiuri Shimbun. Building on their 2nm collaboration, IBM has deployed engineers to Rapidus's Hokkaido site, signaling deeper ties as both companies pursue next-generation semiconductor production and Japan ramps up investment in chip innovation.

China's main chip investment fund is planning to focus on the country's key shortcomings in sectors like lithography and semiconductor design software, adjusting its approach to better overcome US efforts to stop its technological advances.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co.’s smaller affiliate Vanguard International Semiconductor Corp. may accelerate the chip production schedule at its new US$7.8 billion joint venture in Singapore on greater customer demand for hedging against geopolitical risks.
VIS may be able to push production at the new plant, which makes mature chips, to as soon as late 2026 versus the originally announced schedule of the first half of 2027, VIS Chairman Fang Leuh told reporters at a company event on Saturday in Taoyuan, Taiwan. VIS broke ground for the facility in the fourth quarter of 2024.

TSMC's US$65 billion Arizona expansion, initially hampered by cost overruns and construction delays, is now showing signs of strategic success as the chipmaker addresses key operational challenges.

Safroadu Yeboah-Amankwah, chief strategy officer (CSO) at Intel, is set to depart the company by June 30, marking one of the latest executive changes following Lip-Bu Tan's appointment as CEO in March, according to two individuals familiar with the matter who spoke to Reuters on condition of anonymity. Intel has confirmed Yeboah-Amankwah's departure, expressing gratitude for his contributions.

Sino-American Silicon Products Group (SAS) is accelerating its push into integrated semiconductor materials and equipment services through strategic acquisitions. On June 27, 2025, the group announced that its subsidiary, Taiwan Speciality Chemicals Corp. (TSCC), will acquire a 65.22% stake in semiconductor equipment service provider Hong Jie Technology Co., Ltd. in a cash transaction.

Below are the most-read DIGITIMES Asia stories from June 23 to 29, 2025. Top developments include Huawei's stalled 5nm chip efforts, Renesas scaling back its EV power chip business, and Apple's expanding OLED iPad roadmap. From memory price spikes to supply chain shifts driven by AI and trade policy, this week's stories spotlight the top challenges and strategies shaping the global tech landscape.

The semiconductor industry rarely sees such a stark contrast in leadership philosophy as the one emerging between Intel's current and former CEOs. Pat Gelsinger, who recently stepped down after failing to engineer Intel's revival, now offers strategic advice to Japan's Rapidus on challenging TSMC. Meanwhile, his successor, Lip-Bu Tan, has wasted no time in his emergency appointment, announcing significant layoffs just three months into his tenure.