Acer Inc.'s European repair service subsidiary, Enfinitec, has recorded steady growth over the past decade, benefiting from the company's expanding brand presence and the growing demand for professional repair services. Tobi Musson, CEO of Enfinitec, stressed that by servicing different product lines for the same client or similar products for a wide range of customers, Enfinitec's consistent quality has enabled it to expand its market steadily.

Precision gear manufacturer Khgears International has been actively delivering samples of gears and harmonic reducers for robots in its efforts to grow in this segment. The company achieved record high cumulative revenue in the first eight months of 2025, buoyed by growing robot-related shipments, with new robot gear projects slated to begin mass production and shipments in the fourth quarter of 2025.

Virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), and AI smart glasses have become hot topics recently, highlighting the growing interest in the optical industry. However, most developments remain more hype than substantial progress. Industry insiders note that while AR and VR products are advancing, their market growth is slower compared to smart glasses, with unclear demand surges. Despite high buzz around smart glasses, challenges persist.

The Taiwan Institute of Economic Research (TIER) released the manufacturing business climate signals for July 2025 on September 2, 2025, revealing that out of 21 manufacturing sectors, 19 flashed "blue lights" indicating recession in its composite index. However, with 70% of Taiwan's exports falling under tariff-free electronic and tech products regulated by the WTO Information Technology Agreement (ITA), the strong shipments in electronics and AI servers have softened concerns over traditional industries facing difficulties.

Taiwan's pneumatic component maker Airtac International Group reported August 2025 revenue that showed steady year-over-year growth despite month-over-month fluctuations. Management emphasized that customer demand continues to outpace shipments, expressing confidence in achieving low double-digit growth this year despite lingering tariff and exchange rate pressures.

As the retro wave sweeps in, digital still camera (DSC) demand is rebounding. Companies like Asia Optical and Ability have reported positive news, but while some celebrate, others face challenges. The supply chain for digital single-lens reflex camera (DSLR) lenses remains relatively subdued.

Acer chair and CEO Jason Chen pointed out that in the first half of 2025, the impact of US reciprocal tariffs was significant but has since dulled. Signs of recovery are emerging in Europe; however, operational challenges for PC brand manufacturers continue to increase. The upgrade wave previously driven by Intel's processor updates has become history.

With the artificial intelligence (AI) wave driving strong demand for AI server hardware products, the energy, power supply, and electromechanical industries have also benefited, due to the high power requirements of AI computing. Beyond technological advancements, providing an adequate supply of talent remains a crucial cornerstone for industry development.

The rapid advancement of GPU power is driving demand for faster, higher-frequency data links in AI servers and hyperscale data centers. With transfer rates pushing 32 gigatransfers per second, PCB traces are hitting their physical limits, shifting the industry toward high-speed copper cabling and purpose-built connectors.

Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) reported third-quarter fiscal year 2025 revenue of US$9.1 billion, surpassing analyst estimates, driven by strong demand for AI servers and networking products. The company also announced the completion of its acquisition of Juniper Networks.

Ahead of IFA Berlin, Acer held its "next@acer" global product launch event, unveiling a range of new notebooks, tablets, mini workstations, monitors, and Wi-Fi routers. Among these, two major gaming notebook lines—Predator and Nitro—introduced fresh models targeting the competitive gaming market.

Garmin will launch a microLED version of its flagship Fēnix 8 Pro smartwatch on September 8, marking a significant milestone as the world's first watch to integrate microLED technology. Priced just shy of US$2,000, the new watch costs about US$700 more than a similarly sized 51mm (approximately 1.4-inch) model with an AMOLED screen. Yet this 50% premium promises to bring an unprecedented 4,500 nits in terms of brightness, making it the "brightest ever" smartwatch with ultra-wide viewing angles and exceptional resolution.

Acer is making a strong push into the AI inference market through strategic collaborations with MediaTek and Nvidia. On the eve of the Berlin IFA, Acer held its "next@acer" global product launch event, unveiling for the first time a Chromebook powered by MediaTek's Kompanio Ultra processor. This Chromebook integrates MediaTek's neural processing unit (NPU) and leverages Google AI Pro features to comprehensively enhance AI productivity, aiming to capture opportunities in AI inference.

Japanese fiberglass cloth giant Nitto Boseki (Nittobo) announced plans to invest JPY15 billion(US$101.87 million) to expand its production facilities to meet surging demand from AI server customers. The group will build a new factory equipped with advanced fiberglass fabric manufacturing capabilities. Production is expected to begin gradually, starting from the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2026 at the earliest, which ends March 2027.

The appreciation of the New Taiwan dollar in the second and third quarters of 2025 has exerted significant pressure on Taiwan's export industries, with many manufacturing sectors falling into recession, according to a survey by the Taiwan Institute of Economic Research (TIER).

As AI shifts from the cloud to the edge, Yuan High-Tech has gradually transitioned from its roots as an image capture hardware maker to a supplier of comprehensive solutions. According to company president Hong-pei Lin, in addition to the continued steady development in its core image capture products, the company is actively expanding into professional cameras and edge computing platforms, leveraging its expertise in its existing core technologies.

Smartphone manufacturers have reduced the number of camera lenses to make devices thinner, focusing on performance and image correction instead. This trend has led suppliers like LG Innotek to pivot toward high-resolution sensors and automotive camera modules.

Taiwan's HTC recently launched its first AI glasses, the VIVE Eagle, which received an enthusiastic market response with strong preorder sales in Taiwan. The success has prompted the company to ramp up production and prepare for an overseas rollout by the end of the year.

Taiwan's semiconductor automated test equipment (ATE) maker Chroma ATE has filed a lawsuit against Good Will Instrument (GW Instek), accusing the rival instrument maker of infringing on its intellectual property by copying the name and interface of its self-developed automated test system, ATS 8000. The case was submitted to Taiwan's Intellectual Property and Commercial Court on September 1, 2025, under the Fair Trade Act.

Taiwan-based slide manufacturer Nan Juen International (Repon) announced its earnings results for July 2025, reporting continued improvement in gross margin driven by the rising proportion of server shipments. The company achieved a gross margin of 33.62%, marking the second-highest level in its history.

Taiwan-based PCB manufacturer APCB is launching two new products in 2025, following significant capacity downsizing in 2024. However, the company noted that the new QSFP optical module boards and DDR5 R-DIMM memory module boards have yet to reach mass production, and their contribution to revenue remains limited. Contributions are expected to significantly increase in 2026, potentially becoming a key growth driver for the company's operations.

Samsung Electro-Mechanics (Semco) CEO Duckhyun Chang reportedly met Boston Dynamics CEO Robert Playter at the company's Suwon headquarters in late July to discuss potential cooperation on next-generation robotics, including humanoid robots.

Most of President Donald Trump's global tariffs were ruled illegal by a federal appeals court that found he exceeded his authority in imposing them, but the judges let the levies stay in place while the case is subject to further review.

The global boom in artificial intelligence (AI) is fueling demand for computing power and driving a surge in AI data centers (AIDC), creating fresh opportunities for Taiwan's heavy electrical equipment makers.

The global labor shortage has intensified demand for automation, yet traditional robots still lead the short-term market. Collaborative robots (cobots), however, are gaining steadily, particularly in Taiwan's semiconductor and server sectors. Universal Robots views this as a long-term bullish trend despite current geopolitical and economic uncertainties that may slow investments temporarily.