Demand for 5G handsets may have been dampened by the quick spread of the coronavirus, but other 5G segments, such as instrastructure deployments, have remained robust enough to help shore up IC backend firms' sales. The outbreak has fueled further talks among IT firms about moving production facilities out of China, but for the HDD sector, its major manufacturing hub is already in Southeast Asia, with Thailand boasting the biggest ecosystem. For server PCB suppliers, their sales in the first two months of 2020 were impressive, unaffected by the outbeak. IC backend firms see strong demand from non-handset 5G segments: IC backend houses are enjoying stronger demand from 5G infrastructure, server and datacenter segments than the handset sector that is being increasingly hit by the fast spread of the coronavirus, according to industry sources.HDD manufacturing cluster formed in Thailand: A cluster of PC hard disk drive (HDD) supply chain makers has been formed in Thailand with Taiwan-based Cal-Comp Electronics & Communications and Quanta Storage also participating, allowing them to circumvent impacts of the coronavirus outbreak, according to industry sources.PCB makers GCE, ACC gaining from strong server demand: Taiwan-based PCB makers Gold Circuit Electronics (GCE) and Allied Circuit (ACC), both dedicated mostly to server applications, have reported significant revenue gains for the first two months of the year as shipments have stayed in high gear since the server market resumed growth momentum in the fourth quarter of 2019, according to industry sources.

Taiwan-based automation solution developer Solomon has cooperated with Denmark-based Mobile Industrial Robots (MiR) to release disinfection robots that could help prevent the spread of viruses, while Taiwan-based Papago has also devoted efforts to developing a facial recognition system that can identify mask-wearing people.Solomon is currently offering two disinfection robots with one using UVC and the other a sterilizing atomizer. Solomon's sensor-equipped UVC disinfection robot can avoid coming into contact with people and prevent UVC from causing harm to human bodies.The robot with sterilizing atomizer can atomize and spread disinfectant as high as two meters for an effective coverage.Both robots are based on MiR's autonomous mobile robot (AMR) system and are able to conduct disinfection after working hours or in unmanned environments. Solomon is currently in talks with several hospitals for shipments.Papago has seen increased inquiries for its Face8 facial recognition system in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak. The system is able to identify a person's face even with a surgical mask on and can be used on many occasions. The company is now looking to expand its penetration with customized Face8 solutions.Papago saw consolidated revenues reach NT$1.85 million (US$60,920) in February down 41.57% on year with combined sales for the first two months of 2020 arriving at NT$4.22 million, down 63.61% on year.Solomon disinfection robotPhoto: Company

China-based Suning Holdings is trialing unmanned last-mile delivery of online purchased merchandise items to buyers in place of conventional delivery by couriers to avoid possible coronavirus infections via person-to-person contact, according to China-based media reports.The entire delivery process except the last-mile delivery is already highly automated, including automated sorting and loading of merchandise items and automatically assigned logistics cars for transportation to local distribution centers.Suning began experimenting last-mile delivery using autonomous vehicles in 2018, and is now trialing autonomous vehicles equipped with a 5G-based tracking system for delivery to buyers within 3km, the reports said.But Suning Technology, Suning Holdings' subsidiary which develops automated logistics technology, indicated that it is technologically difficult to realize completely unmanned last-mile delivery for the time being, the reports said.Suning's subsidiary e-commerce operator Suning.com has seen online sales value hike 419% since the outbreak, the reports said.

In the wake of the coronavirus outbreak, many firms in the IT world have revised their business outlook for first-quarter 2020. But TSMC still sees significant demand for its foundry services, reportedly seeing its upcoming 5nm capacity fully book by clients. Its major handset chip clients, such as MediaTek, are all gearing up shipments for 5G applications. The handset market is still clearly transitioning to 5G, but overall handset shipments in China plunged in February, thanks to the epidemic.TSMC to kick off 5nm chip production in April: TSMC is set to kick off volume production of chips built using 5nm process technology in April, and has already seen the process capacity fully booked by clients, according to industry sources.MediaTek ramping up 5G chip shipments despite outbreak: MediaTek has started ramping up its 5G chip shipments, driving up its revenues for the first two months of 2020 by 25.11% on year to reach NT$30.43 billion (US$1.01 billion), with the sales performance much better than expected despite the coronavirus outbreak, according to industry sources.China handset shipments fall over 50% in February: Handset shipments in the China market fell 56% on year to 6.384 million units in February 2020, as the coronavirus outbreak halved demand for mobile devices, according to data compiled by China Academy of Information and Communications Technology (CAICT).

Astra, a Taiwan-based startup specialized in commercializing facial recognition technology, began to cooperate with Japanese telecom carrier NTT East to provide cloud computing-based image streaming and subscription-based facial recognition services for small- to medium-size enterprises in Japan three years ago, and the cooperative business has since accumlated over 1,000 monthly paid users, according to company founder and CEO Gary Kao.Facing increasing competition from mobile telecom carriers in the Japan market, NTT East teamed up with Astra to provide value-added services trying to maintain user basis and increase revenues, Kao said.Most of NTT East's over two million enterprise users are small- to medium ones, including retail stores and restaurants, and they are target users of the collaborative efforts, Kao said.As facial recognition services are expensive, Astra and NTT East provide such services on a subscription basis, with monthly rents being 1/200 of corresponding sales prices, Kao noted, adding that monthly payment coincides with telecom carriers' charging schemes and is affordable for target users.Astra has developed a MSP (managed services provider) platform specifically for NTT East's management for service operation, including users' devices and processing of data, Kao indicated. Via the MSP platform, users of the facial recognition services can get information on customers' age, sex, the numbers of their recurring visits, and volumes of visitors, Kao said.While facial recognition can help users learn more about their members and regular customers, most users hope to understand non-members and irregular customers for retargeting, and this is currently a bottleneck in application of facial recognition technology as well as a problem Astra strives to solve, Kao indicated.Facebook and Google provide data on clicking and visiting rates but are unable to let retail stores know who have watched online advertising about their business, or how many customers and sales the online advertising has brought, Kao noted.Astra compares customers detected via facial recognition with fan groups' user behavior and thereby finds highly loyal VIPs that visit stores and click "likes" in fan groups as well, Kao explained. For example, Astra had recognized visitors to a wine and spirits exhibition and compared them with the exhibition's fan group to screen out the overlapping persons, and later found they were frequent buyers with average annual spending of NT$200,000 (US$6,633) on wine & spirits each, Kao noted.Astra, unlike online marketing's influence on retail stores (offline), compares offline information with online data and hopes that the approach can help clients find additional customers, Kao indicated.Astra was runner-up in a startup contest held under CIAT (Cloud Computing & IoT Association Taiwan) Acceleration Program in November 2019.Astra founder and CEO Gary KaoPhoto: Company

Memory vendors have been cautious about increasing output in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak, despite significant demand from certain maket segments, such as datacenters and enterprise-class SSDs. It is foreseeable that memory prices will continue to climb in the second quarter of 2020. Foundry services are another sector that has been left almost unscathed by the outbreak. Lead-times at 8-inch fabs have extended because of tight capacity, as clients concerned about possible supply disruptions have stepped up order placements. Passive components makers have reported sales decreases for February because of output contraction at their China plants in the wake of the outbreak, but they remain optimistic with Yageo mulling raising prices to reflect increased costs. Memory contract prices to see double-digit increases in 2Q20: DRAM and NAND flash memory contract prices are expected to register double-digit increases in the second quarter of 2020, driven by growing demand for data centers, and enterprise-class SSDs and other applications, according to industry sources.Eight-inch foundry delivery lead time extended: Eight-inch wafer fabs' delivery times have extended to more than 12 weeks to reflect their tight capacity, according to sources at Taiwan-based analog IC firms. The lead times were below eight weeks before the Lunar New Year holiday, the sources said.Yageo, Walsin post significant revenue decreases for February: Passive components makers Yageo and Walsin Technology both posted sequential and annual falls for February 2020 revenues due to significant contraction in output of MLCCs and chip resistors at plants in China amid the coronavirus outbreak.

Taiwan-based startup JWI Intelligent Technology has developed an in-house-developed automated machine learning engine as an educational tool to help enterprises introduce machine learning as an initial step to realizing smart manufacturing, according to company president Jerry Huang.Many enterprises' digital transformation bids lack methods for implementation and experienced personnel for AI integration. JWI provides integrated consulting services to help clients build forecast models using their own operating data as the first mile of reaching AI-based digital transformation, Huang said.JWI's machine learning engine helps clients build quality forecast models, for example, for solder paste printing process in SMT (surface mount technology) and thereby recommending optimal printing parameters, Huang noted. If clients relocate factories or set up new ones abroad, they can apply the proven forecast models to the same equipment, Huang indicated.JWI's business model provides 10-day POC (proof of concept) services plus one-year licensed use of the machine learning engine on a subscription basis. The engine can be used to build various forecast models using the clients' equipment and operating data and based on their domain knowledge, Huang said.While the machine learning engine is to educate clients to build preliminary forecast models, JWI focuses on the educational purpose for the time being. After the engine has been widely adopted, JWI will consult with industry experts to build domain knowledge-based forecast models tailored for individual industries, Huang said.As clients may apply forecast models to different factories, management of different forecast models simultaneously poses a problem, Huang noted, adding JWI will seek to set up a related management platform based on experience gained from large clients' cases.JWI was winner at the 2019 startup contest sponsored by CIAT (Cloud Computing & IoT Association Taiwan) Acceleration Program in November 2019.JWI Intelligent Technology president Jerry Huang (right)Photo: Company

Apple's ban on its engineers from traveling to Asia in the wake of the coronavirus has reportedly affected the development of its next-generation iPhone devices that are supposed to be launched in fall this year. The travel restrictions has reportedly delayed the engineering verification test for the 5G iPhones at manufacturing facilities in China. Handset vendors may still be optimistic that 5G smartphones will become mainstream devices sooner or later, but 5G phone shipments will be much lower in first-half 2020 than originally expected, thanks to the outbreak.Travel restrictions reportedly delaying tests for next-generation iPhone: Apple reportedly has extended the deadline by one month to the end of April for the removal of a set of travel restrictions preventing its engineers from making business trips to Asia, a decision that could have a direct impact on the planned launch of 5G iPhone devices in the second half of 2020, according to industry sources.5G handset shipment boosts unlikely till 2H20: Shipments from the 5G handset supply chain for the first half of 2020 are expected to be one third of those for the second half, instead of 50% as estimated earlier, as first-quarter sales of 5G smartphones have been hard hit by the coronavirus outbreak and second-quarter shipment prospects remain unclear amid the worsening epidemic, according to industry sources.

Taiwan-based Hugreen has cooperated with Netherlands-based developers of greenhouses to make greenhouses smart through establishing sensing networks and monitoring systems, according to company founder and CEO Clement Lee.About 80% of Netherlands-based developers' overseas greenhouses have been left idle simply because Dutch experts assigned to these greenhouses are not willing to stay abroad for too long, Lee said. This is one of the problems Hugreen aims to solve, Lee noted.The Netherlands is a global leader in using greenhouses to grow crops, especially floriculture, Lee said. Netherlands-based greenhouse developers have advanced agricultural technology, proprietary crop varieties and global sales channels, but basically rely on manual labor to manage greenhouses, Lee noted, adding Hugreen's capability in setting up LoRa-based sensing networks and related monitoring systems exactly complements their strengths, Lee indicated.Sensors can monitor soil conditions, including moisture, temperature, acidity and fertilizers, with data collected transferred via LoRa for analysis to control optimal soil conditions, Lee explained. In addition to fixed sensors, mobile cameras are used to go around greenhouses to take photos for comparison with sensing data, Lee said. Hugreen has passed Netherlands-based greenhouse developers' testing of sensing accuracy and data transmission for resulting cooperation, Lee noted.Hugreen has 13 patents about monitoring and adjusting soil conditions, Lee said. While there are at least six methods of measuring soil moisture, Hugreen adopts permittivity to avoid influence by fertilizers and other factors, Lee noted, adding it has sent trainees to th eNetherlands to learn how to evaluate maximum effects from photosynthesis, estimate cost structure for greenhouses and other professional knowledge.Currently, Hugreen's clients are of two categories: one is greenhouse developers and irrigation project undertakers in more than 20 countries; and the other is small farmers and academic units in universities, Lee said.A 160-hectare greenhouse in Shanghai, China has adopted more than 1,600 sensors and 1,900 smart switches supplied by Hugreen, which has also helped it analyze optimal methods and conditions for growing 67 varieties of vegetable and fruit, Lee indicated.Hugreen's business model is to first provide hardware and consulting services for clients and later charge certain percentages of their sales revenues after successful operation of greenhouses, Lee said.Hugreen founder and CEO Clement Lee (front right) and colleaguesPhoto: Company

Supply chains had been keen to move their production lines out of China amid intensifying trade tensions between the world's two superpowers before the coronavirus hit. Now they have turned concervative about relocating their manufacuring as the fast spreading outbreak clouds the global economy. But passive components maker Yageo still plans to expand production capacity outside China to fulfill rush orders. For Apple, the epidemic reportedly is delaying production for an entry-level version of AirPods Pro that the vendor is believed to be launching.ODMs decelerate non-China production expansions as outbreak worsens: Supply chains have turned cautious about capacity expansion outside of China amid growing economic uncertainites in the wake of the widespeading coronavirus outbreak, according to the industry sources.Yageo boosting non-China production to fulfill rush orders: Passive components maker Yageo is gearing up to boost capacity utilization at its plants outside China to mitigate the coronavirus impact on its overall output of MLCCs and resistor chips and to fulfill rush orders from clients, according to industry sources.Production of entry-level AirPod Pro to resume momentum in 2Q20, says sources: Production of an entry-level version of Apple's AirPods device is expected to resume momentum by the end of first quarter or early in the second quarter of 2020, according to upstream component suppliers for TWS devices.Production of entry-level AirPod Pro to resume momentum in 2Q20, says sources: Production of an entry-level version of Apple's AirPods device is expected to resume momentum by the end of first quarter or early in the second quarter of 2020, according to upstream component suppliers for TWS devices.