The AI boom is reshaping global supply chains and accelerating manufacturing's shift toward smarter operations. Tong Ming, the world's largest single stainless-steel fastener maker, said it will invest about NT$140 million (US$4.4 million) in the second half of 2026 to automate a semi-finished goods warehouse at its Changsheng plant, while strengthening automation, digital management, and precision services to boost competitiveness and address challenges from the EU's Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) and supply-chain restructuring.
Ubtech has launched the U1 series, its first mass-produced full-size bionic humanoid robot line, under the U World sub-brand, testing China's market for AI companion robots beyond industrial and service uses.
Apple is reportedly planning to launch at least five new models by this time next year, with the company expanding its foldables' production. Amid surging component prices and a weakening smartphone market, these moves may be a bid to gain market share while rivals are on the back foot.
Global server demand is expected to stay strong through 2027, with implications for cloud operators, hardware makers, and data center customers worldwide. Large-scale buildouts, rising AI deployments, and high-performance computing demand are keeping supply chains tight, lifting prices, extending lead times, and raising the risk of fresh bottlenecks.
Wistron chairman Simon Lin said artificial intelligence (AI) is improving the quality of professional talent, noting that tasks that previously required 100 people may now be completed by as few as four or five. As a result, AI can help address labor shortages caused by declining birth rates, while also creating value at different levels.
Nvidia is deepening its role in the AI infrastructure market by offering financial guarantees to emerging GPU cloud providers in exchange for a share of their future cloud revenue, according to The Information. The initiative is designed to help smaller cloud operators secure financing for costly AI chips while reducing Nvidia's dependence on hyperscale customers.
Cheng Mei Materials is expanding into semiconductor materials to support supply chain adjustments for outsourced chip assembly and test customers worldwide. The company's progress with customers in China and Taiwan could lift shipments in the second half of 2025, even as its core polarizer business faces weaker demand, cost pressure, and tighter order cycles.
Japan's sovereign AI push is moving from policy ambition to industrial buildout, with SoftBank-backed Noetra at the center, and Foxconn emerging as a likely infrastructure partner. Backed by substantial public funding, the program signals Tokyo's intent to treat compute capacity, data centers, and domestic control over AI systems as strategic priorities.
Mobile system-on-chip (SoC) vendors are collectively upgrading flagship platforms to 2nm in 2026. Beyond the need for better specifications, the bigger goal is to avoid the most heavily booked 3nm process and secure more supply.
Taiwan plans to launch an emissions trading system (ETS) in 2028 as the next phase of its carbon pricing framework — a cap-and-trade market where companies buy and sell permits to emit greenhouse gases. However, environmental researchers and academics caution that the experiences of Japan, South Korea, and the European Union (EU) show that emissions trading markets take years to mature and operate effectively. With Taiwan's own carbon fee only recently taking effect, they argue the government should prioritize policy continuity and give businesses time to internalize carbon costs and implement decarbonization strategies before introducing a cap-and-trade regime.
