While the cancellation of MWC 2020 and the locked-down management in many cities in China due to the coronavirus outbreak have raised concerns about the development of 5G, the epidemic may end up with limited impacts on the operations of telecom firms as well as the deployments of 5G infrastructure in 2020 if it can be contained by mid-year, according to Digitimes Research.It is obvious that the deployments of 5G networks in China will be affected as many Chinese cities currently being locked down are those that have been given priority for installation of 5G base stations, Digitimes Research has found.However, judging from the experience that gained from the SARS outbreak in 2003, quarantine and other isolation measures will eventually deepen people's reliance on communication services in terms of increased mobile subscribers, mobile revenues and voice traffic.In addition, the deployments of 5G networks are long-term infrastructure projects that may be only temporarily interrupted by short-term incidents, and China's telecom operators are poised to expand their capex significantly to accelerate their 5G deployments in the second half of 2020 provided the epidemic is under control by June, says Digitimes Research.Nevertheless, if the epidemic continues into the second half of the year, the development of the 5G industry in China may not accelerate until 2021.The development of the global 5G industry had been fast before the outbreak. By the end of 2019, a total of 61 telecom operators worldwide had kicked off commercial 5G services, with the availability of 5G end-market devices totaling 208 items, Digitimes Research notes.Accumulated number of 5G base stations in China, 2019-2025 Source: Digitimes Research, February 2020

Everyone in the ICT sector had expected the 5G era to get off to a flying start in 2020 when the coronavirus hit. Major players continue to make deployments for 5G, but cannot be sure when the momentum will actually pick up. Now Taiwan-based chip vendor MediaTek, whose major market is in China, expects weaker growth for 2020. But Acer is confident that the notebook market is poised to have a strong rebound in demand in the second half of the year. For AMD, it is likely to see strong growth in sales, as PC OEM and brand vendors, and motherboard and graphics card manufacturers continue to step up their development projects for AMD's Zen 3-based Ryzen CPU series manufactured using TSMC's 7nm EUV process.MediaTek to see 2020 growth constrained: The coronavirus epidemic has cast a shadow over MediaTek's competitiveness in the 5G SoC market this year, as China is the chipmaker's largest market, according to market observers.Global notebook market poised for rebound in 2H20, says Acer chairman: The global notebook market is poised for a strong rebound in the second half of 2020 as the coronavirus outbreak has not resulted in severe impacts to demand in other parts of the world including Australia and Europe as compared to the harm that has brought to China, according to Acer chairman Jason Chen.Demand for AMD 7nm EUV processors remains strong: Demand for AMD's new 7nm EUV processors remains robust, with development projects for the chips commenced by PC, motherboard and graphics card makers this year set to be 10-20% higher than the levels in 2019, according to industry sources.

Smart vending machine solution developer Yallvend has developed an Internet-connected mask vending machine for trial use at some places in Taipei amid the coronavirus outbreak, according to company CEO Duncan Huang.The Taiwan government has put into force a rationing scheme where surgical masks - which have been in serious shortages since the outbreak - are now only available at National Health Insurance (NHI) program-designated pharmacies around the country. Currently people need to scan their personal NHI cards when buying srugical masks (two pieces per week).People have to use their smartphones to scan QR Code on the vending machine to let the machine authorized to use the corresponding smartphone cameras, Huang said. Then they first scans photos on their ID cards and scan their faces to let image recognition check if scanned faces coincide with the corresponding photos, Huang noted. After the double checking for personal identification, they can press the machine's button to get masks, Huang indicated, adding that the machine delivers masks without any charge for the time being.The whole operating process takes up to one minute, Huang said. This is because the operation is based on web pages instead of App which has more strict control on users' personal data than the former, Huang noted.Huang admitted that as the current mask rationing scheme is proceeding rather smoothly, it is actually unnecessary to deploy such vending machines. Therefore, the machine is developed on an experimental basis for further development of smart vending machines for use in hospitals, Huang indicated.Yallvend-developed Internet-connected mask vending machinePhoto: Yihan Li, Digitimes, February 2020A user scan the photo on ID cardPhoto: Yihan Li, Digitimes, February 2020

Smartization has become a key development strategy across all types of businesses. However, as different industries operate on different systems and in different environments, the design of smart systems has to incorporate a certain degree of customization to be able to accommodate business needs. For this reason, system developers must have a deep understanding of the industry. The Research Center for Information Technology Innovation of National Taiwan University of Science and Technology (NTUST), led by Kai-Lung Hua, a professor of the university's Department of Computer Science and Information Engineering, has always maintained a close connection with Taiwan's high-tech industry. After the participation in the Taiwan Tech Global Research & Industry Alliance (Taiwan Tech GLORIA) project in 2018, the center has engaged in collaborations with Intel through assistance from the project, wherein Intel provides artificial intelligence (AI) tools, businesses raise issues that they want to resolve and students come up with a solution. Such collaborations help students strengthen real-world skills and businesses develop a talented workforce.According to Hua, leveraging AI, computer vision, AR/VR, IoT and other innovative technologies, the center designs smart systems for use by enterprises that address their pain points. Backed by the university, the center has actively engaged in collaborations with Taiwan's industries since its establishment and has successfully helped firms in different fields develop solutions. For example, amid the recent smart manufacturing trend, the NTUST team designed a production equipment prognostics system for global leading electronics manufacturer Inventec to incorporate into its server production line. By putting sensors in the production equipment and connecting them to a network to keep track of equipment operation conditions, the system can estimate time-to-failure based on big data analytics so that engineers can conduct maintenance during scheduled production shutdown, thereby minimizing the chance of unexpected breakdown and maximizing equipment availability. In another smart manufacturing scenario, the NTUST team worked with a high-tech firm and designed a system to identify factory worker actions from images captured on video cameras. The data is then compiled and provided to factory managers for them to monitor if the workers are following standard operating procedures set by the firm to boost yield and ensure labor safety.Aside from smart manufacturing, the computer vision and big data analytics technologies developed by Hua's team have also been used in automotive electronics, gaming and e-commerce. For automotive application, the team's sensor solution combining temperature detection and millimeter wave communication is used in an advanced driver-assistance system (ADAS), allowing it to quickly identify pedestrians, vehicles and objects on the road.For gaming and e-commerce, the team makes use of big data analytics and AI to help firms discover the ideal business strategy. For example, by analyzing the time it takes gamers to advance from one level to the next and social media posts, game developers can set the game difficulty level and treasure prices to thereby optimize gaming experience and increase gamer stickiness. For e-commerce, the team analyzes consumer behavior and spending habit and provides the results to e-commerce operators to serve as the basis for product pricing and marketing strategy planning.Hua noted that most academic researchers lack experience in the world of business, so it is challenging for them to turn research results into commercial products. Having extensive experience in the IT industry is one advantage of the NTUST team. This allows the team to come up with solutions that meet business requirements and systems that can be up and running in a snap.Having long engaged in close interactions with the industry, NTUST's Research Center for Information Technology Innovation is able to further expand its scope of industry-academia collaborations after its participation in the Taiwan Tech GLORIA project in 2018. Its recent partnership with Intel was made possible by the Taiwan Tech GLORIA project. Using development tools Intel provides, NTUST students design solutions to issues that businesses encounter during operation. Through such a collaboration model, students get familiarized with Intel products while learning new and practical skills and businesses get their issues resolved. Hua's team also has multiple ongoing industry-academia collaboration deals in addition to the one with Intel. With help from the Taiwan Tech GLORIA project, the team will continue to strengthen its collaboration with the industry and foster talent with real-world skills for the Taiwan industry.Kai-Lung Hua, professor, Department of Computer Science and Information Engineering, NTUSTPhoto: Kai-Lung Hua

Taiwan-based panel maker AUO suffered heavy losses in 2019, but shipments of large-size niche applications gew sharply during the year. AUO now is banking on 8K large-size panels to rejuvenate its business in 2020. For many, 8K displalys and 5G communication will be two major growth drivers this year and beyond. The coronavirus outbreak may have created some impacts, but deployments in the 5G sector continue for the long- term. Qualcomm has just released its 5nm 5G modem, X60, with ASE Technology set to become one of its major backend partners for the new solution. In the semiconductor sector, MOSFET suppliers are keen to obtain sufficient support from 6- and 8-inch foundries.AUO remains focusing on 8K, large-size panels in 2020: AU Optronics (AUO) has said that that it will continue its established strategy to focus on developing 8K and high-resolution large-size panels in 2020 expecting to see exponential shipment growth of these items in the year, according to company sources.ASE Technology to secure backend orders for Qualcomm 5nm 5G modem chips: Qualcomm has newly unveiled the world's first 5nm 5G modem-RF system, the Snapdragon X60, to be paired with its latest, third-generation 5G mmWave antenna module, QTM 535, with Taiwan's major OSAT firm ASE Technology Holding set to enter the backend supply chain for both new offerings, according to industry sources.Taiwan MOSFET firms striving for capacity support: Taiwan-based MOSFET chip specialists, which ship mainly to PC and notebook application segments, are striving for capacity support from their foundry partners particularly 6-inch ones, according to industry sources.

The world's top-5 notebook brand vendors saw their combined shipments (excluding detachable models) fall over 30% sequentially in January 2020, due to a combination of negative factors including the coronavirus impact and seasonality, according to Digitimes Research.The fact that the Lunar New Year holidays were in January also reduced output from notebook ODMs during the first month of 2020.Dell leapfrogged HP to the top of vendors rankings, thanks to better sales results from both the enterprise and consumer segments.Lenovo's sales were buoyed by demand from its home maket in China ahead of Lunar New Year.For Dell, changes to its product development and sales strategies affected its results negatively, Digitimes Research believes.The top-3 ODMs also registered a 32% drop in shipments in Januart. But Inventec saw an increase in orders for consumer models from HP.The coronavirus outbreak is expected hit hard ODM notebook production in the first quarter, according to Digitimes Research's latest quarterly notebook tracker report. Top-5 notebook vendors' shipments, Januay 2019-Januay 2020 (k units)Source: Digitimes Research, February 2020

Appier, a startup developing AI-based solutions for precision marketing, has been recognized by Taiwan's National Development Fund as one of the two initial Taiwan-based unicorns.Appier raised venture capital of US$80 million in series-D round of funding in November 2019, taking its cumulative funds to over US$162 million.Appier in October 2019 fully acquired Japan-based AI startup Emotion Intelligence (Emin), and has since integrated Emin's AI solution with its own technology into AiDeal, an AI-based solution that enables e-commerce operators to analyze online shoppers' browsing behavior to predict their purchasing intentions and then provide timely electronic coupons and/or discount information specifically for hesitating customers to promote sales, said Appier co-founder and CEO Yu Chih-han.Since its inception in 2012, Appier has developed CrossX, a cross-device online advertising platform, and Aixon, a data science platform to help users predict customer behavior. Skin car product vendor Neogene, for example, found that consumers were interested in ocean friendly topics via Aixon and thus launched sunscreen products free of polluting chemical ingredients to reduce detriment to coral in 2019.Appier in August 2018 acquired India-based startup QGraph and then developed Aiqua, a proactive customer engagement platform to help users identify potential customers and push online personalized advertising.Simply speaking, Appier's mission is to help clients attract new customers, understand customers and retain them, Yu indicated.For application of AI to marketing, many enterprises with abundant data inside have a common problem: It is difficult to integrate fragmented data, said Appier co-founder and COO Winnie Lee, adding that integration of fragmented data is crucial to profiling customers' behavior to make precision marketing decisions.To save enterprises' cost for setting up AI teams, the AI modeling built in Aixon allows enterprises' marketing staff members without professional AI knowledge to use AI to solve problems, Lee noted. As many small- to medium-size enterprises, especially those in traditional industries, know little about handling data, Aiqua is a relatively easy AI tool for them, Lee indicated.To benefit the most from adopting AI-based solutions, enterprises have to set clear operational goals, have sufficient internal data and well define problems to be solved, Lee explained.With AI as core technology, Appier's success is attributable to the concept of making AI easy through developing common AI platforms applicable to various industries, Appier chief data scientist Lin Hsuan-tien said.Appier co-founders (from left): COO Winnie Lee, CEO Yu Chih-han, and CTO Joe SuPhoto: Michael Lee, Digitimes, February 2020

Applying medication on the skin is a common medical treatment that avoids making an injection into the body. However, transdermal drug delivery is very challenging as the drug must pass through many layers of skin. A team led by Ai-Ho Liao, professor, Graduate Institute of Biomedical Engineering, National Taiwan University of Science and Technology (NTUST), has engaged in the research of using microbubbles for transdermal drug delivery. It is also working with a team from the Ear, Nose and Throat Department of Tri-Service General Hospital, led by Professor Chih-Hung Wang, National Defense Medical Center, Taichung Armed Forces General Hospital, and a group of dermatologists from Tri-Service General Hospital and researchers from the Department and Graduate Institute of Biochemistry, National Defense Medical Center to apply the research results to therapeutic uses. Liao's team is in talks with leading medical and pharmaceutical supply firm Johnson & Johnson about a collaboration deal through assistance from the Taiwan Tech Global Research & Industry Alliance (Taiwan Tech GLORIA) project.According to Liao, in clinical applications, microbubble contrast agents are injected intravenously to enhance the contrast of ultrasound imaging. Furthermore, different degrees of microbubble oscillation due to distinct acoustic fields can elicit various degrees of cavitation. Inertial cavitation can enhance the permeability in the surrounding tissues, increase vessel wall permeability, and promote drug entry from blood into cytosol or matrix, whereas stable cavitation can slightly increase tissue permeability without causing any harm.Making use of ultrasound-induced microbubble cavitation, a group of Canadian researchers combined focused ultrasound (FUS) with intravenously injected microbubble contrast agents to successfully increase blood-brain barrier permeability and enable effective chemotherapy drug delivery to brain tumors in 2015. Liao's team converted the microbubble contrast agent for non-intravenous drug delivery using ultrasound combined with various devices.Microbubbles can be encapsulated in albumin, lipid or polymer shells, said Liao. Her team explored the use of liquid or gel-type microbubbles at a specific concentration and diameter combined with wound dressing and microarray chips for ultrasound-mediated transdermal drug delivery by way of spreading or spraying on the skin. It enhances transdermal absorption of drugs or skin care ingredients and therefore can be used to raise the efficacy in drug delivery for treatment of hair loss, joint pain, surgical wound and inner-ear infections. Leveraging ultrasound energy, the general-purpose microbubble device Liao's team has developed can also promote the effects of skin care products. Ultrasound energy has been widely used in industrial and manufacturing applications, manifest in a wealth of different forms and devices. The combined use of non-injected microbubbles and ultrasound energy allows the cavitation effects to be controlled and increased, thus bringing enhanced benefits in application.The NTUST team's microbubble composite medical material currently targets three main uses, including enhancing the transdermal delivery efficacy of medication or ingredients, building experimental models for inner-ear drug delivery and gene transfer, and studying the pharmacokinetics when administering microbubble-coated anti-cancer or chemotherapy drugs to a targeted diseased area so as to reduce dosage and adverse effects. In particular, the team is the world's first to use ultrasound-mediated microbubbles to facilitate the delivery of drugs to the inner ear and has won a National Innovation Award for its achievements.Such achievements would not have been possible without full commitment but this also means they have very little time and resource for product promotion. That is the reason why Liao's team chose to participate in the Taiwan Tech GLORIA project in 2018. Through Taiwan Tech GLORIA's assistance, the team is able to increase visibility and was thus invited to a video conference with the US-based firm Johnson & Johnson in 2019 to discuss promotion for the team's technologies and products. Participation in Taiwan Tech GLORIA also enabled the team to exhibit its research results at Taiwan Healthcare+ and gain access to information and opportunities of overseas training for its members.Taiwan Tech GLORIA's matchmaking efforts brought the NTUST Graduate Institute of Biomedical Engineering team's research achievements to light for the industry to see. Going forward, the team will keep strengthening its research work. Liao plans to establish a startup firm to commercialize the team's research results while expanding them to a more diverse range of applications.Ai-Ho Liao (third from right in right row) and Chih-Hung Wang (third from front in middle row), and their reseach teamPhoto: Ai-Ho Liao

The US has been mounting pressure on its allies over its trade ban on Huawei, which has in turn been shaking the IT supply chain. The world's top pure-play foundry TSMC, with Huawei being one of its major clients, reportedly is moving to reduce its reliance on the Chinese tech giant. But TSMC's clients should be rest assured that the foundry house will be able to maintain smooth operations despite the coronavirus outbreak in China, which is home to only a small portion of its capacity. Most other ICT and semiconductor firms that have heavily relied on production in China are having difficulties resuming normal production. Among them are suppliers of CIS and chip resistors, which are running out of supply, with prices set to go up. SSD retail prices in China are also rising unexpectedly, as channel distributors are now reluctant to sell amid concerns of supply chain disruptions.TSMC cuts chip capacity support for Huawei, say sources: TSMC has started reducing its chip capacity support for Huawei, but is still working closely with the China-based vendor in the development for advanced 5nm and 3nm chip solutions, according to industry sources.CIS, chip resistor shortages emerging: The coronavirus outbreak in China has further tightened supply of CMOS image sensors (CIS) and chip resistors, with severe shortages set to surface and price hikes to follow, according to industry sources.SSD retail prices rally in China beyond expectation: SSD retail prices in China have been rising unexpectedly, as channel distributors have become reluctant to sell amid worries about possible supply chain disruptions caused by the coronavirus outbreak, according to industry sources.

OmniEyes has developed a car fleet management solution through AI-based analysis of real-time video, according company co-founder and CEO Chou Chun-ting.By virtue of machine vision and edge computing, the solution can analyze real-time video recorded by cloud computing AI-enabled cameras installed on cars to automatically detect dangerous driving behavior - such as running the red light, not yielding or stopping at stop signs, violating no-turn or no-entry regulation and illegal parking - and then send warnings, Chou explained.As conventional GPS car tracking devices are unable to reflect real road conditions and GPS positioning may slightly deviate from actual locations arising from traffic interferences, OmniEyes' solution can make up for the deficiency, Chou indicated.Express delivery service provider Taiwan Pelican Express has adopted the solution to minimize driver risks and optimize logistics performance, Chou said, adding taxi service provider Taiwan Taxi and public bus operator Metropolitan Transport have also adopted the solution.OmniEyes co-founder and CEO Chou Chun-tingPhoto: Yihan Li, Digitimes, February 2020