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Thursday 21 May 2026

From US$10m to US$2.2bn in 17 months: Starcloud bets on orbital fix for AI's energy crisis

Philip Johnston, co-founder and CEO of Starcloud, opened the second day of the Plug and Play Silicon Valley May Summit in Sunnyvale with a proposition that would have sounded implausible three years ago: the most economical place to build AI data centers may soon be in orbit.

Thursday 21 May 2026

OSE targets AI server SMT growth as memory demand lifts outlook

Orient Semiconductor Electronics (OSE) said that strong memory market demand is lifting its outlook and expanding its role in the memory supply chain, while also strengthening its importance in surface-mount technology (SMT) for AI server boards with major US clients.

Thursday 21 May 2026

Iron Force eyes North America production, AI server cooling shipments in 2Q26

Iron Force Industrial saw short-term pressure in its operations during the first quarter of 2026, due to tariff swings in the US-China trade war, adjustments to its product mix, and foreign exchange losses from a stronger Chinese Yuan. The automotive safety parts and thermal solutions maker also pointed to new progress in its efforts to enter the AI server cooling market, with liquid-cooling products set to become a new growth driver as shipments begin in the second quarter.

Thursday 21 May 2026

Analysis: Lens Technology seeks control of Ju Teng to expand beyond Apple

Lens Technology's bid for control of Ju Teng International Holdings is putting renewed focus on changes in the notebook supply chain, as the Chinese supplier seeks to reduce its reliance on Apple and broaden its product portfolio.

Thursday 21 May 2026

Limited joint-load capacity threatens humanoid robots' ability to replace human labor

Humanoid robot developers and suppliers are increasingly focused on joint-module load-bearing capabilities as a key barrier to replacing human workers, according to supply-chain sources. Industry participants cite limited payload capacity, reduced durability of reducers, and structural strength as primary constraints on commercialization.

Thursday 21 May 2026

Agibot claims 100% success rate in factory deployment as humanoid race shifts to real-world validation

Peng Chen, business development director at Agibot, used the robotics session of the 5th Mobis Mobility Day in Sunnyvale to make a pointed argument: the humanoid robotics industry has moved past prototype competition into a phase where real-world deployment results are the only metric that matters.

Wednesday 20 May 2026

E Ink debuts color e-paper photo frames and monitors at Computex 2026

E Ink Holdings showcased color e-paper digital photo frames, monitors, smartphone-sized readers, and lifestyle products at Computex 2026, which opened on June 2 in Taipei, aiming to push e-paper into homes, offices, and personal spaces. The exhibit presented devices that use the E Ink Spectra 6 color e-paper technology to deliver vivid, paper-like visuals with no backlight and low power consumption.

Tuesday 19 May 2026

McKinsey warns of pilot purgatory as robotics market eyes $400 billion by 2040

Sarthak Vaish, associate partner at McKinsey & Company, delivered a pointed reality check at the 5th Mobis Mobility Day in Sunnyvale: the hardware for humanoid robots is ready, but the organizations meant to deploy them are not.

Tuesday 19 May 2026

Dell AI Factory crosses 5,000 enterprise clients on Nvidia-fueled demand

Dell Technologies has added 1,000 customers over the past quarter for its AI Factory servers, which use Nvidia chips and software to power AI applications for enterprises. The hardware company has been working to establish itself as a go-to partner for traditional businesses looking to weave AI into their workloads.

Tuesday 19 May 2026

TDK expands bonding equipment investment, launches first mass production of nanocomposite materials

Japanese electronic components manufacturer TDK will make its largest-ever capital investment in fiscal 2026, running from April 2026 to March 2027, to address surging demand related to artificial intelligence (AI), focusing on batteries, hard disk drive (HDD) components, and multilayer ceramic capacitors (MLCC).

Tuesday 19 May 2026

Lens Technology's Ju Teng bid puts China's notebook supply chain in focus

Lens Technology is seeking control of Ju Teng International Holdings in a deal that could cost as much as US$337 million, expanding the Chinese precision manufacturing supplier's reach in notebook casings and hardware components as electronics suppliers position for a new wave of AI-enabled devices.

Tuesday 19 May 2026

Humanoid race will produce only one or two winners, Plug and Play CEO predicts

The humanoid robotics industry is heading for a brutal shakeout. Despite more than 100 startups currently active across the US, Europe, and China, Saeed Amidi, founder and CEO of Plug and Play, predicts that only "one or two will become the next Hyundai or the next Hyundai Mobis" — the rest will fall away.

Tuesday 19 May 2026

Humanoid robotics opens 'once-in-a-generation' opportunity for auto suppliers, says Hyundai Mobis

Hyundai Mobis is moving to become a core supplier to the humanoid robotics industry, announcing a direct actuator supply agreement with Boston Dynamics and outlining a sweeping strategy to redirect its automotive manufacturing capabilities toward a market it sees as the defining industrial opportunity of this era. The company's Tier-1 auto supplier position, it argues, makes it uniquely equipped to tackle what it identifies as the sector's most critical constraint: actuator supply at scale.

Monday 18 May 2026

TI says safety will decide 800V AI data center adoption and supplier wins

Pradeep S. Shenoy, a computing technology expert at Texas Instruments's (TI) US headquarters, recently shared his views on 800V architectures for AI data centers in a media appearance. He said 800V solutions will not see broad adoption in AI data centers in 2026, but rollout will accelerate year by year from 2027.

Monday 18 May 2026

Apple Watch blood pressure alerts drive TASC demand as 2026 redesign looms

Apple has added a new high blood pressure notification feature to Apple Watch, sharpening the device's health-management appeal. Market watchers expect a major redesign of high-end Apple Watch models in the second half of 2026, which could boost end-market shipments by 20% to 30% from 2025 as incoming CEO John Ternus takes over on September 1.

Monday 18 May 2026

Hiwin doubles robotics revenue share in 1Q26 on semiconductor automation demand

Taiwan precision motion-control leader Hiwin Technologies is accelerating growth on the back of semiconductor automation and robotics demand, with robot-related products emerging as a rapidly expanding revenue driver as the company deepens its push into wafer-handling systems, logistics robots, and humanoid robot components.

Saturday 16 May 2026

AI server tracker: Rising server demand leads to high revenue growth for rail kit makers

Growing demand for AI is driving appetite for server components across cable connectors, cases, and rail kits. This wave has led most major Taiwanese players in the industry to record rising annual revenues, with some exceptions. Rail kit makers in particular have posted strong annual growth as AI servers claim a larger share of their business.

Friday 15 May 2026

China keeps tight InP export controls despite Trump-Xi talks

As the US and China continue to clash over geopolitics and critical materials supply, industry sources say China's restrictions on indium phosphide (InP) substrates for optical communications remain unchanged and are widely seen as part of Beijing's effort to counter US-led AI development.

Friday 15 May 2026

TTI targets global ADC market with upstream next-gen linker and payload platforms

Taiwan-based Tripartite Therapeutics, Inc. (TTI) is positioning itself at the forefront of the global antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) race with a proprietary technology platform aimed at overcoming long-standing barriers in targeted cancer therapies. Ahead of its listing on the Taipei Exchange's Emerging Stock Board on May 20, the company says its integrated linker and payload technologies could help international drugmakers develop safer, more effective, and commercially scalable ADC treatments.

Friday 15 May 2026

Fiber shortage deepens as orders for Chinese vendors extend to 2027

The global optical fiber market is shifting from a traditional telecom cycle into a new phase of structural shortage, driven by rapid AI infrastructure expansion and dense cloud data center construction. Prices and capacity are rising together as demand for fiber, a core material for data transmission, keeps climbing.

Friday 15 May 2026

Metalens technology reaches key turning point, as DUV, DLW, NIL processes compete for advantage

Metalens technology is now moving from proofs-of-concept toward targeted applications in smart glasses and machine vision, as its extreme thinness makes it well-suited for use cases with miniaturization demands, even if physical dispersion remains an issue for full-color imaging. The three main manufacturing technologies now in use are deep ultraviolet (DUV) lithography, laser direct writing (DLW), and nanoimprint lithography (NIL), of which MetaOptics currently leads in DLW production, while Taiwan-based players are pursuing NIL manufacturing.

Friday 15 May 2026

Edge AI is transforming wearables into proactive health and sensing platforms

Edge AI is accelerating across consumer devices and is increasingly embedded in wearables, reshaping smartwatches, earbuds, and smart rings into proactive sensing and response endpoints, industry research showed. Market analysts describe this shift as unfolding now and expected to deepen through 2032, with wearables moving from passive connected accessories to devices that sense, understand, and act on user status and environment in real time.

Friday 15 May 2026

Column: The new space arms race is being fought with AI, lasers, and autonomous satellites

The emerging space arms race toward 2030 is no longer defined simply by the number of satellites nations can launch into orbit. Increasingly, it is being shaped by breakthroughs in advanced communications, artificial intelligence (AI), orbital logistics, and rapid launch systems, technologies that could redefine military power in space over the next decade.

Friday 15 May 2026

Taiwan touch panel makers post mixed 1Q26 results on consolidation and uneven demand

Taiwan's touch panel makers posted mixed first-quarter 2026 results. TPK Holding led the sector after consolidating display driver IC maker Ilitek, boosting revenue, margins, and net profit despite ongoing core operating losses. In contrast, GIS Holding remained in the red amid weak demand visibility, while YoungFast Optoelectronics increasingly relied on electromechanical and gaming-related products to cushion softness in its traditional business.

Friday 15 May 2026

AI server tracker: Optical module suppliers show mixed momentum as AI networking demand reshapes market

Taiwan's optical module supply chain delivered mixed April 2026 results, reflecting uneven demand patterns across AI infrastructure and data center networking markets. According to the latest data, the overall April revenue reached approximately NT$2.1 billion (US$66.6 million), down 7.4% month-over-month but still up 1.2% year-over-year. Cumulative revenue for the sector remained strong, rising nearly 20% year-over-year.

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