Intel's market leadership in the semiconductor industry may be at risk, according to Evercore ISI. The firm lowered its rating to in line from outperform for Intel shares, saying the search for the company's next CEO will add to investor uncertainty.

Moore's Law is dead, long live AI. That's the semiconductor industry's new rallying cry, sounded at a daylong symposium sponsored by Applied Materials at Semicon West.

ON Semiconductor plans to invest $51 million to support expansion of the Luzerne County facility. The ON Semiconductor Mountain Top location specializes in the manufacturing of semiconductor discrete devices used in power management applications across a wide variety of industries including automotive, industrial, communication and computing.

Intel has started production of modem chips that will go into Apple's upcoming iPhones later this year, while the US semiconductor company continues to eye markets beyond personal computers and pledges to take the lead in fifth generation, or 5G, wireless communication after 2019.

The German designer and maker of semiconductors used in cars, industry and IoT applications said it expects growth of at least 10% next year, followed by 9% growth in the following years. It previously targeted 8% growth.

Dialog Semiconductor is in discussions with touch-pad technology maker Synaptics about a potential deal with the US company, according to people familiar with the matter.

China has launched a probe into Samsung Electronics, SK Hynix and Micron Technology, the three semiconductor makers who control the market for DRAM memory chips.

Dialog Semiconductor said Apple now planned to source the main power management chips (PMICs) for one of its three new iPhone models from two suppliers instead of just from the German chipmaker.

Korean semiconductor packager Nepes has become the world's first to commercialize fan-out panel level package (FO-PLP) technology.

Apple manufacturing partner Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) has started mass production of next-generation processors for new iPhones launching later in 2018, according to people familiar with the matter.

Semiconductor Manufacturing International (SMIC), China's top state-backed contract chipmaker, has placed an order for one set of extreme-ultraviolet lithography equipment, according to people familiar with the matter.

In a move that could further heighten tensions with the US, China is poised to announce a new fund of about CNY300 billion (US$47.4 billion) to spur development of its semiconductor industry as it seeks to close the technology gap with the US and other rivals, according to people familiar with the matter.

China's state-backed semiconductor fund is near to closing a CNY120 billion ($18.98 billion) investment round for a second fund to support the domestic chip sector and help cut reliance on imports amid a bruising trade standoff with the United States.

Dialog Semiconductor expects Apple, its top customer, to use its chips for a significant proportion of its devices in 2019 and 2020, Chief Executive Jalal Bagherli told a German newspaper.

Nvidia cracked the list of top 10 semiconductor vendors by sales for the first time in 2017, joining Qualcomm as the only other strictly fabless chip supplier to attain that distinction last year, according to market research firm IHS Markit.

The combined product portfolio and future common platforms of UnitySC and HSEB will support manufacturing of devices used in mobility, automotive and internet of things applications.

China's finance ministry said on Friday it has introduced tax breaks for chipmakers made in the country, at a time when the government is seeking to reduce dependence on foreign semiconductors amid trade tensions with the United States over technology transfers.

Fueled by heavy government investment, IC packaging and testing in China generated $29 billion in revenue in 2017.

In the deepening trade negotiations between China and the US, the bargaining chips are quite literally chips.

Engineers see many options to create 5nm, 3nm and even 2nm semiconductor process technologies, but some are not sure that they will be able to squeeze commercial advantages from them even at 5nm.

With this acquisition, KLA-Tencor will significantly diversify its revenue base and add $2.5 billion of addressable market opportunity in the high-growth PCB, FPD, packaging, and semiconductor manufacturing areas.

China will continue to invest in the development of high-end chips and will monitor the sector to ensure that only products of high quality are manufactured, said the head of the country's national semiconductor fund.

Globalfoundries has asked Chinese regulators to probe Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. for violating antitrust laws, said two industry sources familiar with the matter.

Dialog Semiconductor expects Apple, its top customer, to use its chips for a significant proportion of its devices in 2019 and 2020, Chief Executive Jalal Bagherli told a German newspaper.

China's government aims to raise as much as CNY200 billion ($31.5 billion) to invest in homegrown chip companies and accelerate its ambition of building a world-class semiconductor industry, people familiar with the matter said.

Does ever-emerging Ferroelectric Random Access Memory(FRAM) have a role in autonomous vehicles? Cypress Semiconductor thinks so.

Qualcomm and Broadcom plan to meet on Wednesday to talk about the latter's $121 billion acquisition offer, the first time the semiconductor companies will discuss the potential deal, people familiar with the matter said.

Broadcom plans to unveil a new approximately $120 billion offer for Qualcomm on Monday, aiming to ratchet up pressure on its US semiconductor peer to engage in negotiations, people familiar with the matter said on Sunday.

China will fill 15% of its semiconductor needs in 2020 and perhaps 20% in 2022. That's significant growth, but far from the targets of 40% in 2020 and 70% in 2022 that the China government has set.

A plan for a billion-dollar fab in Guangzhou, China, aims to pool investments from fabless companies, creating a built-in customer base. It is the latest addition to a growing list of projects as the country tries to build up its semiconductor sector.

Micro semi, the largest US commercial supplier of military and aerospace semiconductor equipment, is exploring its options, including a possible sale, after it received a takeover approach, a person familiar with the matter said on Tuesday.

In 2017, about two dozen acquisition agreements were reached for semiconductor companies, business units, product lines, and related assets with a combined value of $27.7 billion compared to the record-high $107.3 billion set in 2015 and the $99.8 billion total in 2016.

Beijing-based Naura Microelectronics Equipment has completed a deal to buy US semiconductor manufacturing equipment company Akrion Systems.

Price increases for both DRAM and NAND flash memory are raising the outlook for the overall semiconductor market.

Samsung Electronics is positively considering rolling out a next-generation DRAM using an early 10 nano process as early as the beginning of 2019 by constructing a dedicated production line with EUV exposure equipment in the Hwasung Semiconductor Factory Complex in Gyeonggi-do. Experts say that this strategy aimed to secure profitability while widening micro-process technology gaps with competitors in the booming DRAM market.

Asian stocks retreated from Friday's record after Morgan Stanley downgraded Samsung Electronics and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, saying their shares had risen too much.

In another consolidation move in the semiconductor industry, chipmaker Marvell Technology announced it will acquire competitor Cavium for approximately US$6 billion. It's estimated that the combined company will generate about US$3.4 billion in annual revenue.

Imec has expanded its long-term joint research efforts with Western Digital. Under a new agreement, imec and Western Digital will collaborate in R&D of a broad range of advanced semiconductor technologies.

According to industry sources on October 19, Samsung Electronics is considering a plan to purchase 10 extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography tools from ASML.

Bhatia has over 22 years of engineering and operations experience, including the last 17 years in the semiconductor industry. He most recently served as the executive vice president of Silicon Operations at Western Digital.