As electrification becomes a clear trend for future cars, solutions for infrastructure, power supply and batteries are very much in need to develop a sound and sustainable ecosystem in line with such a trend. Propulsion Quebec is an NPO created to support the ecological transition of transportation by enhancing the collaborative efforts of the industry.Digitimes recently talked to Propulsion Quebec CEO Sarah Houde to better understand how the Canadian province of Quebec is developing its EV ecosystem through her organization.Q: Please give a brief introduction to your organization and your mission.A: We are a non-profit organization that was created with the initiative of the government of Quebec to accelerate the development of our high potential industries. It was created in 2017. At the moment it is still an emerging industry, but is very fast growing and with high potential for many different reasons. Our key performance index would focus on the number of jobs, the contribution to Quebec economy, and the number of companies and their size, as well as exports. We have 210 members right now, most of them are manufacturing and services in five different sectors, such as electric vehicles (EV), smart vehicles, smart infrastructure, mobility services, and charging infrastructure.In the electrical vehicle sector, they range from mining companies that provide strategic and critical elements for the batteries, to the vehicles at the OEMs. We don't manufacture that many cars, but we do everything else. Our spectrum spans from electrical scooters, and electrical trains, and everything in between, such as electric buses, trucks, snowmobile, garbage trucks, bikes, etc.In the charging industry, we have members manufacturing charging stations, components, hardware and software for smart vehicles and infrastructure.Our 5th sector is the innovative business model of smart mobility, such as bike-sharing, car-pooling, mass mobility as a service, apps, etc.We are a team of 20 people, based in Montreal, but we are covering all Quebec. We have members all across the territory.By identifying obstacles for our industry, we are concentrating all our efforts towards, basically, regulation and public policies, to help transition from internal combustion engine vehicles to more sustainable mobility. We also work on R&D, experimentation, demonstration and commercialization, which covers the cycle of developing a product. We also work on workforce issue, to make sure conditions such as we are growing the industry but we don't have candidates to fill the positions won't happen. That's not worth it, so we work with post-secondary institutions so that they offer the right training. And we help our companies to attract the right credential candidates. Finally, we work with private funding, private equity funds, banks, just to make sure our industry gets the right portion of private investments to meet their needs to growth.Q: Since your establishment, there have been exponential growth in your membership. Can you also share with us the trends of significant growth in the industry?A: Sure. Across the world, there has been exponential growth for electrical vehicles of all sorts. We see that in Quebec because we have manufacturers that were there at very early stages and have been growing. We had zero members when we were established in 2017, and now we have 210 (all Quebec companies). All of our KPIs, including the number of the companies, their sizes, exports, sales, and contributions to Quebec GDPs, we calculated them in 2018. At the time KPMG did the calculation, and there were 147 companies, and now we have 210. Lion Electric company (a Canadian company that manufactures electrical vehicles) now has six models, compared to only one model just three years ago. It is mind blowing.Q: What is Canada's vision for future transportation behind this project? What goals and purposes were set for this endeavor?A: I do not speak for the government of Canada. But I think we share this vision of using ecological transition as a development tool. We are tapping on our assets, such as hydraulic electricity in Quebec, which contributes a great deal of power we use at very low tariffs. That makes a business case for electrification. We also have the critical minerals I mentioned for the batteries. We have the natural resources, and pool of expertise from the National Research Center on electricity. We also have a pool of experts from artificial intelligence (AI), which is super useful for optimization of transportation flow, logistics, etc. There are very innovative elements plus the natural resources, and when put together, you can hope to create an economic development movement that is supporting the transition into a more sustainable growth. Here in Canada, or Quebec, transportation is responsible for 43% of greenhouse gas (GHG) emission, so when we transition on transportation, we really have a significant impact on the environment. So it is in Canada's vision to invest in that sector to achieve economic development goals as well as GHG emission reduction.Q: How can Taiwan be a partner to support Canada's transition in smart transportation industry? Any specific companies that you have in mind to become partners as such?A: Yes, we think we should be attractive to many Taiwanese companies. Besides all those assets as I mentioned, the cost of living here in Quebec and especially Montreal is also low. We also have government incentives for R&D, so we do have attractive elements for Taiwanese tech companies related to smart transportation and electrical vehicle sectors. This is where we would both benefit from a closer relationship.Q: The Taiwanese companies play a very dominant role in the global supply chain, serving lots of North American companies in the electricity, EV industry. Now Taiwan also has a big EV ecosystem proposed by Foxconn, which is called MIH. What kind of opportunities are open to Taiwanese tech companies? Would you consider MIH a potential member for your alliance?A: Yes of course. It would be a win-win cooperation. Maybe there are also opportunities for the Taiwanese companies in working with us in R&D, prototypes, advanced manufacturing, finding solutions for complex problems, etc. We are working on a EV with a battery that can get you further, carry heavier loads, with faster charging - everybody all around the world are trying to invent those things. If we can work with Taiwanese companies, especially your readers, I think it would be on R&D projects. We are developing an innovation hub, called "sustainable mobility city," for companies that are big, small, local, and international to work together on collaborative research projects with researchers from Quebec to find solutions on those complex problems. They work together in a neutralized space, use neutralized equipment and shared IP. The idea is to accelerate the R&D process in the sustainable mobility sector. This is a highly competitive sector at the international level. This is where we should be working together.Q: As you mentioned EV and batteries are important industries in Quebec. Are there rare earth deposits and mining in Quebec as well?A: Yes. We have lithium, nickel, cobalt and graphite. These are the most present minerals we have. There are also other kinds of rare earth in Canada, but these four are the most present.Q: Canada is very advanced on the AI field, while Taiwanese companies are very strong on the hardware side. They are very complementary.A: Quebec seems to be a perfect place to develop batteries, because we have the natural resources, stable and predictable political environment. We also have the cleanest energy mix in America, ideal for batteries supply chain. Manufacturing 4.0 is such a big program here, to ensure we use as much automation as possible to enhance productivity across the country, definitely a priority. For complex vehicles that we manufacture in Canada, we also need automation to build, sustain, and maintain them.Q: Propulsion Quebec has already led 16 trade missions to different markets around the world. What are the markets that you have visited, and do you have plans to visit Asia?A: Most of our trade missions are in the US, because they are our main export market. We have had 16 trade mission in three years. We had one in Europe, and have been to Asia twice. In 2019 we went to Singapore, and the year before that we went to China and Japan. Our next stops in Asia would probably be South Korea and Taiwan when Covid is behind us.Propulsion Quebec CEO Sarah HoudePhoto: Propulsion Quebec

LCD panel makers have seen orders picking up, in turn boosting their demand for driver ICs. But supply of LCD driver ICs has fallen far short of demand, prompting vendors to consider raising prices. Many other components are also in short supply, including networking chips. Some networking chip vendors, such as Braodcom, have had to extend their delivery lead times. At TSMC, its foundry services are expected to see strong demand from 5G, HPC and automotive sectors during second-quarter 2021.LCD driver IC supply falling short of demand by over 20%: The supply of LCD driver ICs has fallen short of demand by more than 20%, prompting Taiwan-based suppliers to consider price hikes, according to industry sources.Networking chip supply getting tight: Some networking chip vendors, such as Broadcom, have extended their delivery lead times to as long as 50 weeks due to the tight supply of critical parts and components, heralding the tight supply of networking chips in the second half of 2021, according to industry sources.TSMC 2Q21 capacity filled by orders for 5G, HPC and auto chips: TSMC has seen its production capacity during the second quarter filled by a strong pull-in of orders for 5G, HPC and automotive electronics chips, according to industry sources.

The global top-5 notebook brands saw their combined shipments, excluding those of detachable models, decline 8% sequentially in February while the top-3 notebook ODMs' combined shipments fell 9% on month, according to Digitimes Research.End demand for notebooks in February was stronger than that of the same month a year ago, but shortages of manpower and components were worse.Hewlett-Packard's (HP) Chromebook shipments continued to rise in February with the US-based brand's overall notebook shipments only dipping slightly from a month ago, Digitimes Research's figures show.Lenovo was the only top-5 brand with on-month shipment growth in February thanks to its robust gaming and education model shipments. Dell's February shipments performed weaker than those of its competitors as the company had entered a new fiscal year in the month.ODM Quanta Computer experienced an on-month shipment increase in February thanks to brisk orders for Chromebooks and MacBooks.

There may be uncertainty lying ahead for the notebook market in second-half 2021 amid overbooking concerns and speculations about stay-at-home needs waning later this year. But currently demand remains strong. Memory suppliers still see strong order momentum from their notebook clients. In the graphics cards segment, Nvidia's GeForce RTX 30 series has been in server shortage, partly due to production issues at its foundry partner and partly due to strong demand from cryptominers. The ongoing short supply from the foundry sector has highlighted the importance and dominance of TSMC. Now Taiwan's science park authorities are building an even stronger ecosystem around TSMC.Memory demand for notebooks still robust: Brand notebook vendors and OEMs continue to step up their pace of chip orders, including those for memory chips and devices, despite overbooking concerns, according to sources at memory suppliers.Shortage of Nvidia GeForce RTX 30 series unlikely to ease by 3Q21: Nvidia's GeForce RTX 30 series graphics cards are still in short supply, which is unlikely to ease by the third quarter of this year, according to sources at graphics card makers.Semiconductor materials and equipment vendors gaining presence at STSP: The Southern Taiwan Industrial Park (STSP) Administration is enlisting more semiconductor upstream materials and equipment vendors to further strengthen the core IC manufacturing ecosystem at the park, according to CK Su, director general of the administration.

Worsening DDR3 shortages are sending prices soaring and prompting some suppliers to increase DDR3 output to meet clients' demand. Samsung reportedly is also slowing down a plan of switching its focus for the low-density DRAM segment. Strong demand for DRAM has also resulted in a supply strain at memory probe card makers, whose delivery lead times have almost doubled. In China, SMIC reportedly has made major improvements to its 14nm FinFET process yield rates and is seeking to regain orders previously lost amid US trade sanctions.DDR3 memory shortage worsens: Global supply of DDR3 chips has fallen short of demand by at least over 30,000 wafers, which has been pushing up pricing for the memory, according to industry sources.DRAM probe card demand ramping up: Major memory probe card vendors in the US and Japan have seen a surge in demand from DRAM suppliers, with delivery lead times for their orders already extended to around 20 weeks from 12, according to industry sources.SMIC striving to regain chip orders: With the US trade restrictions on Semiconductor Manufacturing International (SMIC) reportedly easing, the China-based pure-play foundry is striving to regain orders particularly those for its 14nm FinFET process, according to industry sources.

Profet AI has introduced AutoML, an automated machine learning platform to enable makers to develop AI-based solutions for manufacturing processes and management, according to company founder and president Jerry Huang.AutoML is intended to simplify AI technology to facilitate manufacturers' development of AI-based solutions for in-house use, Huang said, stressing the platform serve the role of a virtual data scientist, and all users need to do is input data for the problem they need to solve and then let the platform guide them through the process of developing the solutions.AutoML can undertake PoC of AI models built based on the problems and scenarios to show feasibility of such models in one week, Huang indicated.Founded two years ago, the startup - peviously named JWI Intelligent Technology - has handled more than 50 problems proposed by manufacturers of SMT, PCBs, petrochemicals and other product lines, Huang said, adding an electronics manufacturer has adopted AI-based solutions developed using AutoML and has saved NT$3 million (US$105,630) in cost for precious metals a year and hiked production efficiency by over 12%.Profet AI currently focuses on the Taiwan market. Viewing that many manufacturers have been setting up factories in Southeast Asia, Profet AI plans to tap the market via SaaS (software as a service) business model.Profet AI finished pre-A round of funding by raising over NT$100 at the end of 2020, with AU Optronics (AUO), Hive Ventures and SVTI being major investors.Profet AI founder Jerry Huang (left) with his team Photo: Chloe Liao, Digitimes, March 2021

The world is aging. Taiwan is set to become super-aged by 2025 with one in five citizens being 65 or older. It is growingly important that an aging society bring can concepts and technologies of healthcare and preventive medicine into reality. In view of such needs, Canada-based biotech startup AltumView Systems leverages its expertise in image analysis systems, including sensors, data monitoring and warning, as well as system-level analysis, to help doctors, families and healthcare institutions with early detection of gait changes in older adults or loved ones to prevent the condition from worsening.Edge computing on the watch for senior health and safetyAccording to AltumView president and Simon Fraser University professor Jie Liang, aside from walking difficulties due to age-related degenerative changes, older adults also face problems such as sleep disorder, dementia and drug misuse and require constant attention. AltumView's Sentinare smart sensor uses AI-enabled sensor chips in edge devices to detect the user's movements and assess the risk of falling based on the user's face, gesture and relative position in the space. The analytic results can be provided to insurance companies and medical care institutions for discounts on insurance premiums and to help with treatment/rehabilitation decisions.Transmitting image data in the form of stick figures, AltumView's solution not only ensures information security and protects privacy, but it also saves a great deal of time and cost in the storage, transmission and processing of image data between the on-premise device and the cloud, a significant advantage compared to most other cloud-based image monitoring systems on the market. AltumView has been named a CES 2021 Innovation Awards Honoree for its Sentinare sensor. The system can also be used in telehealth, such as remote monitoring of patients with behavioral disorders.Launching first into the consumer market while engaging in collaboration with institutionsWith a focus on the senior care market, AltumView offers Sentinare at a low cost of US$200 to make its way into the consumer segment. Long-care institutions making volume purchases of Sentinare will be offered discounted prices. Liang also plans to make some of Sentinare's features available through a subscription plan, which is a popular business model in today's software service market.In addition to one-time sale and subscription model, AltumView looks to engage in collaborations with more healthcare institutions and expand their choices when incorporating innovative technologies. It also hopes to enhance the AltumView brand image and introduce its product to more families that need smart sensing solutions, allowing them a chance to know and evaluate the product and thereby make a purchase decision.AltumView expands brand presence and product applications with an aim to ease the burden of senior care for TaiwanTo help prepare for Taiwan's future super-aged society, Liang looks forward to working with more long-term care and homecare institutions in Taiwan by having Sentinare share the daily work of caregivers and raise their work efficiency and care quality. Furthermore, by making Sentinare available through wide-ranging sales channels, it is hoped consumers will have opportunities to gain in-depth knowledge on the diverse applications of AltumView's smart sensor.Founded in April 2016, AltumView employs a team of 16 professionals and 13 among them are engineers, including seven PhDs. It plans to start pre-A round funding in the near future.Additional information at www.altumview.com.AltumView President and Simon Fraser University professor, Jie Liang

Rising material prices are driving up production costs in many sectors, including notebook batteries. Vendors of notebook batteries are now mulling raising prices by 10-15%. ODM Pegatron expects its notebook shipments to decline in first-quarter 2021 as component shortages worsen. Pegatron has geared up efforts for the electric vehicle (EV) sector, but is taking a different path from Foxconn that has launched ambitious plans for EV development.Notebook battery suppliers to raise prices by 10-15%: Notebook battery module makers are poised to raise their quotes by 10-15% to reflect rising raw materials costs, according to industry sources.Pegatron expects seasonality to drag down 1Q21 revenue: Pegatron expects a seasonal slowdown in end-market demand to drag down its revenues during the first quarter of 2021.Pegatron, Foxconn differ in EV business strategies: Both ICT ODM Pegatron and EMS provider Foxconn Electronics (Hon Hai) have stepped into the electric vehicles (EV) sector, but they have different strategies.

To simplify medical testing and analytical processes has always been a major goal for medical technology innovations and precision medicine. Canada-based startup ViewsIQ provides digital pathology software platform - Panoptiq, which enables real-time digital data sharing to realize remote communication and connection for pathology consultations and make medical education and training more efficient.Digital pathology in 2021: High-value realization of digital technology + AIPanoptiq delivers the fastest real-time image sharing amongst all digital pathology software platforms on the market, according to ViewsIQ. Panoptiq can easily be mounted onto any existing microscope and presents the microscopic image in a range of magnification powers to assist medical professionals with remote education, consultation, diagnosis, communication and connection. It turns a new page for digital pathology in 2021.According to ViewsIQ CEO Kenneth To, it only requires simple software installation for ViewsIQ's solution to help pathologists and other medical specialists at remote locations quickly access comprehensive digital pathology innovations in real time and at a low cost. It also improves the traditional biomedical testing process wherein lab technicians need to examine the specimen one by one. Furthermore, ViewsIQ is working with GenerationsE, a startup also based in Canada endeavoring on AI-enabled pathology imaging analysis, to better integrate AI with digital pathology and create value-added healthcare innovations such as automating much of colorectal cancer screening.Expanding from North America into East Asia while tapping into the growing SaaS marketViewsIQ currently engages in partnerships with a number of pathology departments of medical universities in Japan and Taiwan and will continue to reach out to medical institutions in Asia. Now spanning across North America, its sales network will expand into Japan, Taiwan, China and other East Asian markets going forward. To pointed out that local connection is important to medical technology developers that look to expand market footprint. ViewsIQ will strengthen efforts on cultivating business relationships in these target markets.ViewsIQ markets a software as a service (SaaS) platform, of which the development cost is significantly lower compared to hardware devices, so it has an edge over its competitors that make hardware products both in terms of cost and ability to deploy en masse. To is optimistic about the sales potential and growth momentum of its SaaS platform in markets abroad.Seeking strategic partnerships for mutual market expansions in Taiwan and Canada while raising funds to drive technology advancesTo strengthen its connection with Taiwan's local medical industry ecosystem, ViewsIQ is in search of partnership opportunities with Taiwan-based biotech and healthcare companies in hopes of helping Taiwanese firms tap into the Canadian market and vice versa. In the meantime, it is also actively seeking sales channel partners in Taiwan and East Asia to keep driving digital pathology applications and developments in the region.To hopes to add marketing specialists and engineering professionals to the ViewsIQ team, currently comprising six members, and thereby move forward to seed-round funding. ViewsIQ stays committed to innovative research, continuing to drive advances in digital pathology.Digital pathology in 2021Photo: Company

Medical and high-tech professionals are making major efforts to solve significant medical needs to address the world's leading cause of death - heart failure (HF) disease. Many Taiwan-based teams are trying to provide heart care applications based on non-invasive hardware, software and pattern detection of machine learning technologies. Canada-based medtech startup HemoCath co-founder and CEO Eric Caron is commercializing the firm's Intelligent Heart Failure Monitoring Platform to optimize medication dosing and treatment reducing hospitalization and rehospitalization for HF patients.Minimally invasive medical innovation integrates micro-sensors, device, software, service and information securityHemoCath pulmonary artery catheter (PAC) with micro-sensors is inserted into a pulmonary artery through a vein in an upper arm to directly measure and monitor the pulmonary artery pressure (PAP) and the central venous pressure (CVP) - the two most important metrics for the treatment of HF. HemoCath PAC is less invasive, more accurate and easier to use than products currently on the market. Clinical studies have shown that PAP-guided HF management reduces hospital length of stay by 42% and 30-day readmissions by 58% compared to current standard of care (SoC) See: PubMed.gov and Circ Heart Fail.Total available market is estimated at US$8.2 billion globally - and keeps growing with the aging population. HemoCath's initial target market is the US. HemoCath PAC will initially be submitted for FDA clearance as a 510(K) Class II medical device.HemoCath PAC is integrated with cloud-based remote patient monitoring services incorporating Software as a Service (SaaS), AI and machine learning to provide medical assistance from cardiologists remotely. Patients may only need to pick up medication at pharmacies without having to go back to the hospital. Cloud-based remote HF patient monitoring and HF management will prevent relapse and reduce rehospitalization rate.Reduce hospital length of stay by 42% and 30-day readmissions by 58%, making more flexible and efficient use of medical resourcesAccording to Caron, HemoCath-guided HF management will allow patients to be discharged from hospitals one day earlier - savings to hospital of US$1,500 per HF admission. Pulmonary artery monitoring is achieved by HemoCath PA catheter (OD 1.3mm) integrating optical fiber micro-sensors (OD 0.27mm) connected via optical fibers to an optoelectronic control unit and back-end software.In search of partnerships with Taiwan's healthcare ecosystem and MEMS manufacturersScoring the highest on the Health Care Index, Taiwan's healthcare system has been ranked No. 1 in the world for years. HemoCath is seeking partnership opportunities with medical institutions in Taiwan to conduct clinical studies and obtain regulatory clearance to help more hospitals and patients. HemoCath is also in search of MEMS manufacturing partners to produce high quality and high volume optical fiber pressure micro-sensors in order to make HemoCath technology affordable to hospitals and healthcare systems globally. Currently, HemoCath micro-sensors are manufactured in low volume on 4-inch wafers by a prototyping semiconductor manufacturer.Founded in 2014, HemoCath has reached a number of milestones, including having its technology patented in key countries and preclinical trials showing safety and effectiveness. With a workforce of about six employees, including two full-time and three to four part-time workers, HemoCath is currently in pre-A round funding.HemoCath co-founder and CEO Eric CaronPhoto: Company