Reports on Tesla forming a semiconductor joint venture with a Switzerland-based semiconductor company in China have circulated online (some are now deleted). For this matter, EV media electrek has made investigation, but DIGITIMES dug deeper.
Jaguar Land Rover is reducing vehicle output in the UK through March, as the carmaker prioritizes making higher-margin models because of semiconductor shortages, according to a person familiar with the matter.
Hunan Sanan Semiconductor, a wholly owned subsidiary maker of the largest China-based LED chip maker Sanan Optoelectronics, has signed with a China-based new energy car vendor for supply of SiC chips during 2024-2027, with a total sales value estimated at CNY3.8 billion (US$532 million), according to industry sources.
Automakers reportedly are scaling down orders for components which have long been in stable supply or have become more easily available, so as to reduce inventory costs, while some devices such as high-end MCUs and IBGTs will remain in shortage through 2023, according to industry sources.
Taiwan and Japan already have complementary cooperation in 5G and semiconductor, and the cooperation will likely expand to electric vehicles (EV) and green energy, according to Taiwan's economic minster Wang Mei-hua.
Major automotive chip IDMs including Renesas and Onsemi reportedly have moved to reduce orders placed with testing houses, sparking concerns about whether demand for automotive chips, which has been strong despite market headwinds, is about to undergo a correction. Nevertheless, industry sources said there is still quite a distance to an oversupply of such chips.
Renesas and On Semiconductor (Onsemi) have started scaling back backend orders for their automotive chips in the fourth quarter of 2022, which may indicate the easing of automotive chip shortages, according to industry sources.
With Foxconn's latest announcement to invite Shang-Yi Chiang, TSMC veteran and former SMIC executive, as the chief strategy officer of its semiconductor group, some in the industry perceive the decision more driven by Foxconn's need for brand recognition, network expansion and overall strategic guidance, rather than the need for a technological upgrade, especially when there remains a significant gap between TSMC and Foxconn that can be hard to address in the short term.
Germany-based semiconductor IDM Infineon posted a record revenue of EUR14.2 billion (US$14.75 billion) for fiscal year 2022 and announced that it is investing EUR5 billion in building a new facility in Dresden, Germany.
Infineon Technologies and Stellantis have signed a non-binding Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) as the first step towards a potential multi-year supply cooperation for silicon carbide (SiC) semiconductors. Accordingly, Infineon would reserve manufacturing capacities and deliver the SiC chips to the direct Tier 1 suppliers of Stellantis in the second half of the decade, to be used in Stellantis' EVs.
The UK ordered China's Wingtech Technology Co. to undo its acquisition of Britain's biggest microchip factory more than a year after the deal closed, citing national security concerns.
Rohm Semiconductor has struck a strategic cooperation agreement with China's Shenzhen-based BASiC Semiconductor under which the pair will jointly develop SiC power devices for electric vehicles.
As rapidly rising sales of new energy vehicle (NEV) keep driving demand for auto chips, BYD, the largest NEV seller and manufacturer in China, has decided to delay its IPO plan for its semiconductor unit, focusing on expanding its foundry capacity in eastern China.
LiDAR technology has become critical to enabling self-driving. Australian deep-technology company Baraja develops solutions to miniaturize the sensor and bring down costs. Its technology has been acknowledged by the automotive industry and won a development agreement from a major OEM.
