TSMC is clearly the leader in the foundry business, with a big gap separating the Taiwanese firm from its competitors, including Korea's Samsung and China's SMIC. Samsung has already migrated to 5nm process manufacturing, but reportedly is struggling to raise the yield rates for node. SMIC is lagging further behind though its recent debut on STAR of China's Shanghai Stock Exchange (SSE) has promised sufficient funds supporting its R&D. But SMIC faces hurdles ahead. Chinese firms may be lagging in the foundry sector, but their device assemblers are fast catching up with Taiwanese manufacturers. Taiwan-based Wistron has announced it is selling two plants in China to Chinese device assembler Luxshare, raising speculation that Apple is looking to allow the latter to enterits iPhone supply chain.Samsung struggling to improve 5nm process yield, say sources: It remains to be seen whether unsatisfactory yield rates at Samsung Electronics' 5nm EUV process may affect the launch of Qualcomm's next-generation flagship 5G mobile chip series, according to industry sources.SMIC faces hurdles catching up with TSMC: China's state-backed SMIC has stepped up the development of its FinFET process technology, disclosing plans to roll out its FinFET N+1 and N+2 processes without implementing EUV lithography.Wistron to sell iPhone factories in China to Luxshare:Wistron has announced it is selling two of its subsidiaries in China to Chinese IT manufacturer Luxshare with the transactions to total CNY3.3 billion (US$472.37 million). The transactions could mark major changes to Apple's supply chain strategies, according to industry sources.

Bio Asia-Taiwan 2020, which opens on July 22, 2020, will be held in an unprecedented "Online + Live" format. The event will be the first global biotechnology conference taking place in Asia amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Global Research & Industry Alliance National Cheng Kung University (GLORIA NCKU) and Chang Gung University (CGU) from the International Intelligent Biotech and Medical Alliance have made leaping advances in epidemic prevention research. Their front-running research achievements in body temperature monitoring, surgical masks and virus testing stand a good chance of being marketed worldwide and tapping the multi-billion-dollar virus prevention market.NCKU's HEARThermo smart wristband featured in international journalGLORIA NCKU will showcase its achievements in three theme areas including COVID-19 prevention, in vitro diagnostic (IVD) devices and remote healthcare at Bio Asia-Taiwan 2020. Its exhibits encompass multiple applications and products which are the results of industry-academia collaborations, demonstrating Taiwan's potential in medical biotechnology research for the world to see.According to professor Woei-Jer Chuang, associate vice president of NCKU and director NCKU's Transfer and Business Incubation Center, the university established its Center of Infectious Disease and Signaling Research in 2011, the first of such research institutes in Taiwan. Dedicated to the study of viruses including enterovirus 71 and Dengue virus, the center has accumulated years of research experiences and resources on infectious disease research. NCKU's Department of Biomedical Engineering will be among the university team hosting exhibits at Bio Asia-Taiwan 2020 to showcase its portable platform for rapid infectious disease testing, which can quickly identify highly infective patients of Dengue fever.Since its establishment under the support of the Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST) in 2017, GLORIA NCKU has stayed focused on three main areas: healthcare and biotechnology; smart devices; and green energy and materials. Amid the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, NCKU's team comprising healthcare, engineering and ICT specialists introduced a smart continuous real-time body temperature monitoring system, which combines the HEARThermo wristband for constant body temperature monitoring and AI algorithms for abnormally high temperature detection. The device has been worn by more than 460 frontline and supporting healthcare workers as well as patients since the onset of the COVID-19 outbreak. The report on the use of the system in COVID-19 control and prevention has been published in the renowned Journal of Microbiology, Immunology and Infection. GLORIA NCKU has also received online inquiries from a New York hospital, and from Irish and British firms about the system. The team has also founded a startup NightingaleAI with a focus on CareAI services to continuingly develop high-tech epidemic prevention solutions. Multiple ICT device manufacturers looking to expand into smart healthcare have expressed interest in investment deals.As part of its plan to expand into the healthcare sector, Qisda approached NCKU for industry-academia research collaboration. Its subsidiary BenQ Medical Technology engages in a partnership project with NCKU-supported startup Meet Tec to manufacture coating production equipment based on Meet Tec's patented technology, which can apply coating materials onto surfaces of different characteristics. The technology can be used to help manufacturers of wide-ranging products, such as high-end surgical masks, air filters, baby diapers, feminine hygiene products, protective clothing and electronic devices, enabling anti-bacterial and anti-virus properties for their products. These products are also marketed through BenQ Medical Technology's sales network. The partnership project is a perfect example of an industry-academia collaboration result going to market.More startup firms will present their solutions at Bio Asia-Taiwan 2020, including MediVisionTech's upper gastrointestinal (UGI) bleeding monitoring system. A tiny endoscope with a camera is placed in the stomach via the nasal tunnel. It is connected to a wearable host with image transmission capability. The system constantly monitors images of the stomach for precise and real-time detection of early and post-operative bleeding. Yutech will also exhibit its home care solution, which is a continuously operating heart rate monitor based on a low-power consumption ECG signal sensing module coupled with Bluetooth 5.0 transmission to send data to a remote device.Having collected Taiwan's most comprehensive virus database, CGU makes contribution to global public healthFor its proximity to the Taoyuan International Airport, Chang Gung University (CGU) is selected as a designated coronavirus testing center to help guard Taiwan's borders against COVID-19. CGU's Research Center for Emerging Viral Infections, in charge of coronavirus testing, joined the International Intelligent Biotech and Medical Alliance in 2019. The center will present its platform technology for detecting antiviral efficacy at Bio Asia-Taiwan 2020. Having collected more than half of Taiwan's virus strains, the center holds a valuable virus database, which has attracted the attention of biotechnology firms and venture capitalists.Antiviral efficacy detection uses cells to test and analyze a product's ability to suppress multiple types of viruses. It provides a way for quantification of virus activity, such as plaque reduction assay, to evaluate a product's ability to kill or suppress virus. Take COVID-19 for example. The center has completed DNA sequencing for 32 COVID-19 strains and isolated antibodies from infected patients for 25 strains. The center has three research papers on COVID-19 published respectively in Journal of Clinical Microbiology, Emerging Microbes and Infections and Nature Structure and Molecular Biology.Furthermore, the center has long engaged in the study of viruses that are likely to mutate and cause a widespread outbreak, such as enterovirus, influenza virus and avian influenza virus. It has built animal models of enterovirus 71 and influenza virus infection, so it can help assess vaccine and drug efficacy on animals, provide comprehensive virus detection in cells or animals and support later stage development with lab data.Comprising a group of 50 researchers, the Research Center for Emerging Viral Infections has been in operation for more than a decade since its establishment in 2008. It has engaged in 14 academic exchange and research programs with foreign educational institutions as well as industry-academia collaboration projects with dozens of biotechnology firms every year, including Panion & BF Biotech, Seeing Bioscience, Formosa Biomedical Technology, Far East Bio-Tec, Trentron, Green & Safe and Orange House. Multiple products for influenza virus testing, enterovirus testing and hand soap antiviral efficacy assessment are being marketed as a result of these collaborations. The center even expanded internationally by signing a technology transfer agreement to license its enterovirus viral gene expression plasmid to Singapore-based vaccine company Sun Biotech.The International Intelligent Biotech and Medical Alliance will further invigorate the center's industry-academia collaboration energy by helping the team led by the center's director Shin-Ru Shih tap more forward-looking international resources and make advances in antiviral efficacy assessment services, test kits, vaccine development services and broad-spectrum antiviral drug research. As part of its initiative to foster startups, the alliance has introduced the center to multiple domestic and international medical testing solution providers and pharmaceutical firms which have expressed interest and actively engaged in talks.As a member of the Chang Gung Memorial Hospital Group, CGU has access to clinical trial platforms and healthcare technologies. Its International Intelligent Biotech and Medical Alliance was approved and established in August 2019 with an aim to focus on vertically-integrated, high-quality laboratory animal services, DNA sequencing, translational biomedical engineering, testing bio-chips, long-term care, smart healthcare and unique virus strain testing for vaccine production. More than 20 domestic and international enterprises including Infineon and Medigen Vaccine Biologics have signed up to become members of the alliance.CGU will make its debut at Bio Asia-Taiwan 2020 under the banner of its International Intelligent Biotech and Medical Alliance with 16 teams presenting their research achievements. Kuang-Hung Hsu, vice president, CGU and Wen-Piao Lin, director of Office of Technology Development and Industry Liaison, CGU will join the CGU teams at the event. Aside from the platform technology for detecting antiviral efficacy developed by Shih's team, Chang Gung Hospital will host three exhibits alongside four showcases co-presented with CGU-incubated firms: an indoor space sterilization and disinfection system with Bio-cando, a YSTC precision high voltage DC power supply with You-Shang, a hypochlorous acid generator with Abes and a fecal occult blood test kit with Sigknow Biomedical. Visitors will see actual products on display and have a chance to communicate with the CGU teams to explore potential partnership opportunities.Field of application has always been the key factor driving rapid commercialization of industry-academia collaboration results. According to NCKU, thanks to MOST's GLORIA project, technology transfer from academic research to commercialization has growth 50% in dollar amount over a three-year period. With Taiwan making outstanding progress in COVID-19 control and prevention, the two universities are committed to continuing their efforts toward developing innovative biomedical technologies, with an aim to help the Taiwan biotech sector expand internationally.CGU's platform for detecting antiviral efficacyPhto: CGUNightingaleAI with a focus on CareAI servicesPhoto: Company

Smartphone sales have been weak in the wake of the cornavirus pandemic, but TSMC has disclosed it has seen the supply chain actively preparing for new 5G smartphone launches. TSMC has seen robust demand for 5nm process technology driven by 5G smartphones and HPC applications, but as the pandemic has caused some delays to 5nm chip deliveries, contribution of the 5nm segment to the foundry house's sales in 2020 will be slightly lower than previously estimated. The second-half 2020 outlook for the passive components market may have been dimmed the persisting pandemic, but Yageo's chairman says there is no need to be pessimistic.TSMC raises forecast for 5G smartphone penetration: TSMC has revised upward its 5G smartphone penetration rate forecast for 2020 to 17-19%, but expects the overall smartphone shipments this year to decline 11-13%.TSMC expects 5nm to generate 8% of 2020 revenue: TSMC expects to see 5nm process technology account for about 8% of its total wafer revenue in 2020, compared with the about 10% estimated previously. The foundry also confirmed it has stopped taking new orders from Huawei to comply with US export regulations.Passive components demand unclear in 2H20, but not pessimistic, says Yageo: The passive component market outlook for the second half of 2020 remains uncertain, but there is no need to be overly pessimistic about it, Yageo chairman Pierre Chen has said.

TSMC has reported strong results for second-quarter 2020, thanks to continued robust demand for 5G infrastructure deployments and HPC-related products that was able to offset weaknesses in demand for other applications. Now the foundry house has raise its outlook for 2020, expecting sales growth of more than 20% for the year. Sources from the supply chain estimate that TSMC's wafer start shipments will see a double-digit percentage point gain in third-quarter 2020. The foundry house reportedly is also making Arm-based processors for Apple's next-generation Macs to be launched by year-end 2020p.TSMC expects 3Q20 revenue to increase 9%, raises outlook: TSMC expects to post revenues of between US$11.2 billion and US$11.5 billion in the third quarter of 2020, which is a 9.3% sequential increase at the midpoint. Gross margin and operating margin for the third quarter are estimated at 50-52% and 39-41%, respectively.TSMC wafer start shipments expected to post double-digit gains in 3Q20: TSMC's wafer start shipments are likely to post double-digit percentage point gains sequentially in the third quarter due to high capacity utilization rates enjoyed by the pure-play foundry house, according to sources from Taiwan's IC solution suppliers.TSMC to see orders increase for Arm-based Macs in 2H21: TSMC is expected to see orders for Apple's Macs based on its Arm-based silicon ramp up and contribute substantially to the foundry's wafer sales starting the second half of 2021, according to industry sources.

The coronavirus pandemic has hardly dented the business of the world's top contract chipmaker, and instead market observers believe TSMC will see strong results for the third quarter and the entire 2020, driven mainly by a ramp-up in 5nm and 7nm chip orders. And the foundry house is also seeing strong orders for its mature manufacturing processes. The handset market may be weak at the moment, but 5G smartphone penetration in China is rising, thanks to local vendors lowering prices to stimulate demand. Market watchers bullish on TSMC revenue outlook: Market watchers are generally optimistic about TSMC's sales performance in the third quarter and all of 2020, despite the ongoing coronavirus pandemic and tougher US sanctions against Huawei that may soon block the foundry from producing chips for its biggest China-based client.TSMC sees mature process capacity utilization pick up: TSMC has seen capacity utilization rates for 16nm and more mature processs pick up recently, and has demanded sufficient supplies from related materials providers through October, according to industry sources.Shipments of 5G smartphones gaining momentum in China: Smartphone shipments in the China market decreased 17% on year to 28.6 million units in June, with 5G models accounting for 17.5 million units or 61% of overall shipments in the month, according to media reports in China.

Taiwan is stepping up fostering startups with more innovations in the biotech sector aiming to build a major biotech and medicine R&D base in the Asia-Pacific region, with a focus on precision health and medicine, according to government sources.The government has listed biomedicine as one of the six core strategic industries for priority development in the next few years, and will significantly strengthen biomedical resources and anti-epidemic tech momentum, the sources said.Government officials said Taiwan's biomedicine industry will focus more on promoting precision health for people in all age groups through diverse aspects such as prediction, prevention, inspection, medication and care services.The officials stressed that along with the advancements of AI applications, precision medicine is emerging as a major trend and will continue to usher in new changes and advancements in healthcare services, with biobanks and relevant data to play a key role in biotech innovations and new products development.Taiwan now has a total of 32 biobanks with around 4.5 million specimens, providing unique biomedical resources to support the country's development of precision medicine. This, coupled with big data from the national health insurance databank, can attract multinational pharmaceutical firms to jointly develop biomedical drugs, the officials believe.Taiwan still lags in some advance medical technologies such as immunotherapy, cellular therapy, gene therapy, CAR-T and RNAi, the officials said, adding that the country can leverage its ICT advantage to support cross-domain cooperation with the biomedical sector in developing precision inspection technology and equipment, precision medicines, and personalized healthcare services.

Taiwan-based ICT firms have been keen on developing hardware, software or hardware/software-integrated products for smart healthcare.Wistron Medical Technology, a subsidiary of ODM Wistron, has developed exoskeleton robots and biometric devices, invested in clinical information system provider Maya International, cooperated with a hospital to develop a hemodialysis system and with another to develop a smart hospital management system.IC design house FocalTech Electronics' subsidiary FocalTech Smart Sensors has worked with National Taiwan University Hospital's branch at Hsinchu Biomedical Science Park to develop a smart biometric solution, with measurement data to be combined with the hospital's medical resources to develop a smart medical care ecosystem.Asustek Computer has applied its IT hardware/software capability and R&D of AI, cloud computing and big data to development of smart wearables and smart medical care solutions, and has partnered with several startup businesses and medical device suppliers to form a smart medical care alliance.Notebook and server ODM Quanta Computer has been engaged in precision medicine, focusing on development of algorithms and medical devices as well as application of cloud computing and big data analysis. Quanta has set up an AI lab to develop deep neural network learning, and worked with many hospitals developing telemedicine, smart ward solutions and medical equipment.

Kingwaytek Technology, a provider of digital maps for car navigation, is testing autonomous driving using C-V2X wireless communication infrastructure at an open experimental field in northern Taiwan, according to company president San Huang.This is the first case of using C-V2X to test autonomous vehicles in Taiwan.C-V2X, currently based on 4G MEC (multi-access edge computing) architecture, is used to provide the real-time time length of traffic lights for autonomous vehicles to have enough lead time for making driving decisions, Huang said. Image recognition of traffic lights runs the risk of misrecognition due to reflections or weather conditions, and it cannot tell how long a traffic light will last, Huang noted.Sensing devices, including LiDARs, radars and automotive cameras, have physical limitations, but 5G's low latency and high data transfer speed will allow C-V2X, copuled with edge computing, to shorten the minimum distance allowable for making response or hike the maximum running speed, Huang noted.Kingwaytek president San Huang and an autonomous vehicle being testedPhoto: Yihan Li, Digitimes, July 2020

IT companies generally believe server demand will remain robust in second-half of 2020, thanks to the persistent coronavirus pandemic. For Wistron, it is set to increase server shipments to Fujitsu, which started shifting orders to the ODM from Quanta Computer in 2019. IT firms are mixed about the outlook of the notebook market in the second half, but Acer remains optimistic. The popularity of QLC NAND-based SSDs among servers and other data-intensive devices will be rising due to a fall in NAND flash prices later in the second half of 2020.Wistron enjoys ramp-up in orders from Fujitsu: Wistron obtained orders for servers from Fujitsu in 2019, and has since seen orders ramp up, with shipments set to expand in the second half of this year, according to industry sources.Acer optimistic about notebook demand in 2H20: Acer is optimistic about its notebook sales in the second half of 2020, with abundant orders in hand waiting to be fulfilled, according to company chairman and CEO Jason Chen. The visibility of orders has now extended to 2021.Demand for QLC NAND memory set to boom: The adoption of QLC (4bits/cell) NAND memory is set to grow rapidly starting the second half of 2020, thanks to rising demand for data-intensive applications demanding large-capacity, efficient and cost-effective storage, according to industry sources.

Since IC was invented, the semiconductor industry has undergone four stages of structural changes.In the 1950s-1970s firms such as IBM and Motorola had to handle product design, fabrication and packaging all on their own. In the 1970s-1990s, production for system products and semiconductors was separated. And since the 1990s, IC design, wafer foundry and backend segments have been operating separately. This is basically how the semiconductor industry works today. But starting in 2010, the line of division has been blurred again, with foundry also doing packaging work. TSMC has been able to beat Samsung to Apple's chip orders partly thanks to its packaging tenolohy.With the line blurred, competitiveness will hinge on one's capability of forming with core clients new ecosystems.