Nvidia has begun securing advanced substrate capacity in Taiwan, Japan and South Korea, using capacity reservation agreements and upfront payments to support supplier expansion as next-generation AI accelerators ramp up. The move comes as the global packaging substrate market is projected to grow from US$14.9 billion in 2025 to US$40.2 billion in 2030, while demand for advanced ABF build-up materials is expected to exceed supply from 2027.
Passive component manufacturer Yageo said robust AI demand is driving shipments of multilayer ceramic capacitors (MLCCs) and tantalum capacitors, pushing AI-related applications to nearly 20% of its total revenue in the third quarter of 2026, up from 16% in the preceding quarter.
Semiconductor epitaxy maker Episil-Precision said a localized fire broke out on October 28 at its plant on Innovation First Road in Hsinchu Science Park, but caused no injuries or trapped personnel. The affected facility is one of the company's five production sites and accounts for less than 10% of its total output value and production capacity.
The Taiwan Semiconductor Industry Association (TSIA) expects its members' total output to exceed NT$9.1 trillion (US$279.5 billion) in 2026, a 40.9% year-over-year increase driven by growing AI semiconductor demand. TSIA chairman and TSMC deputy co-chief operating officer Cliff Hou also called for stable power supplies and support for reassessing nuclear plant restarts, provided that regulations and safety requirements are met.
AI is driving strong demand for silicon photonics, but LandMark Optoelectronics' planned sixfold capacity expansion over two years still falls short of customer requirements. The optical communications epitaxy supplier posted third-quarter 2026 net income of NT$621 million (US$19.1 million), up 33% quarter-over-quarter and 5.28 times year-over-year, while major customers have already placed orders covering more than six months.
A fire broke out at the Innovation Plant of semiconductor epitaxial wafer maker Episil on October 28. The extent of equipment damage, the scope of production stoppages, and the recovery timeline remain under clarification. With certain products from Episil already experiencing tight supply, largely driven by wafer manufacturing customers lacking internal adjustable capacity, any damage to existing mass-production equipment risks widening the current supply gap.
Global server CPU shipments are projected to surpass the 50 million-unit milestone for the first time in 2027, reaching 52.6 million units as demand accelerates alongside the industry-wide shift from AI training to inference, according to DIGITIMES Intelligence. While Intel is expected to retain its shipment crown, rival AMD is closing in fast.
As Nvidia introduces a new generation of AI chips each year, gains in computing performance are driving increasingly demanding thermal management requirements.
Applications for silicon carbide (SiC) and gallium nitride (GaN) power devices are expanding across the electronics industry, affecting not only component selection but also product design, manufacturing capabilities and supply chain planning, according to new research from the Global Electronics Association and Accuris, an engineering intelligence and electronic component data provider.
Samsung Electro-Mechanics (SEMCO) told investors on October 28 that long-term agreements are expected to account for more than 60% of its multilayer ceramic capacitor (MLCC) revenue next year, showing how far ahead AI data center builders are reserving components. It said demand was growing faster than expected despite capacity additions and that supply of both MLCCs and flip-chip ball grid array (FCBGA) substrates would tighten further in the fourth quarter.
Surging demand for AI computing is driving advanced packaging toward larger form factors, according to Ting-Hao Lin, R&D vice president at Kinsus Interconnect Technology, speaking at the 2026 TPCA Show. To support this trend, substrate materials must deliver low warpage and exceptional dimensional stability while overcoming challenges in thermal expansion mismatches and structural stress.
Kinsus Interconnect Technology is exploring aluminum nitride (AlN) ceramics as a core material for substrates used in large-scale advanced packaging, seeking an alternative to glass amid ongoing brittleness and reliability challenges, according to R&D vice president Ting-hao Lin at the 2026 TPCA Show.
Unimicron Technology is reshaping its global production footprint and steering resources toward Taiwan's higher-margin AI supply chain as surging AI and high-performance computing (HPC) chip demand drives the need for high-layer-count, large-size IC substrates. The company's board has approved an additional NT$50.9 billion (US$1.57 billion) in long-lead equipment orders and plans to sell its Japanese subsidiary to PCB maker Meiko Electronics.
Major package substrate makers, including Samsung Electro-Mechanics (Semco), are concentrating capital spending on large, high-layer-count ABF substrates, while capacity expansion for BT substrates used in memory packaging remains limited. With BT substrate supply tightening and demand for low-power SOCAMM memory modules rising, South Korea's Simmtech could benefit from its business in both memory package substrates and module PCBs.
South Korean memory module substrate maker TLB has begun developing substrates for SOCAMM3, a next-generation low-power memory module for AI servers, with two major memory customers at home and abroad, according to sources. The company expects SOCAMM3 to enter mass production in 2028 as it expands SOCAMM2 production and builds capacity to retain its position in the high-end memory module substrate market.
South Korean semiconductor equipment component maker MiCo Ceramics is set to acquire an idle facility in Gumi, North Gyeongsang Province, from LG Display (LGD) for KRW150 billion (approx. US$113.2 million). The acquisition of the land and buildings will allow MiCo Ceramics to expand production capacity for key products, including ceramic heaters and electrostatic chucks (ESCs). The deal highlights a broader trend across the tech sector, as real estate assets shed during display industry downsizing are repurposed for the semiconductor supply chain.
US materials giant 3M recently entered into a strategic partnership with Taiwanese optical component manufacturer Genius Electronic Optical (GSEO), with plans to acquire a 4.7% stake in the company through a private placement. The two companies aim to accelerate technology development and expand manufacturing capacity for expanded beam optics (EBO).
As military conflict in the Middle East cripples global energy infrastructure, the United States is emerging as the critical anchor for the world's high-tech manufacturing sector. Amid a historic supply crisis for helium, an indispensable element in the production of semiconductors and advanced electronics, as well as in medical imaging, the US Department of Energy has officially designated helium as a critical material under the Energy Act of 2020.
South Korean optics maker Optoelec is seeing growing interest from AI data center customers as it seeks to expand its wafer-level optics (WLO) business into high-speed optical communications, a market where Taiwanese suppliers are already moving toward commercial production.
As advanced packaging shifts toward large-size glass substrates, Cheng Mei Materials Technology is developing materials to address warpage, heat resistance, and drilling challenges. Its cutting and grinding tapes have entered customer validation and small-volume testing, while its anti-warpage film and heat-resistant tape remain in development.
In the era of AI and high-performance computing (HPC), the once-separate worlds of chip design, packaging, and circuit boards are converging. According to the Global Electronics Association, AI server motherboards have become the largest, thickest, and most structurally complex PCBs ever manufactured, drawing substrate and PCB makers, which historically reacted to decisions made by chipmakers and packaging clients, into the heart of AI hardware development.
Samsung Electro-Mechanics (Semco) is gaining pricing power as AI server demand extends multilayer ceramic capacitor (MLCC) lead times beyond a year. Shortages now span consumer, automotive and industrial products, prompting customers to secure 2027 supplies.
Tesla and Nvidia are reportedly investing a combined KRW3.7 trillion (US$2.8 billion) to help Samsung Electro-Mechanics expand Ajinomoto Build-up Film (ABF) substrate production facilities in South Korea. The move reflects growing efforts by global technology companies to secure stable supplies of high-performance semiconductor substrates for AI applications.
Apple's iPhone Duo has gone on sale, with pre-orders in several key markets reportedly exceeding the company's expectations. Delivery dates have stretched to late 2026 and even early 2027. The strong initial response could partly offset weaker-than-expected sales momentum for the iPhone 18 Pro series, pointing to growing consumer interest in foldable smartphones.
