Taiwan's leading IC substrate maker Unimicron Technology will invest NT$30 billion (US$981.03 million) to set up a new plant in Taiwan dedicated to production of IC substrates with high layer count and large area to cash in on the ever-expanding AI applications.
Unimicron chairman Tzyy-Jang Tseng told the press after its annual shareholders meeting held recently that the output value of AI applications is expected to exceed that of cloud servers in 2025-2026, and the company expects its new high-end substrates for processing AI GPUs, AI HPC chips and AI server processors to bring it substantial revenues in the years to come.
Tseng noted that AI servers, if done well, will trigger the fourth industrial revolution, which may affect all levels of operations in 8-10 years and usher in explosive business opportunities for related supply chain players.
He disclosed Unimicron will year by year roll out new IC substrates, particularly ABF substrates, with high layer counts and large areas for processing diverse AI chips solutions. He said confidently that the company will have a chance to grasp nearly 50% of orders for diverse AI applications in the next few years.
In terms of business prospects for 2023, Tseng said the overall market demand may not see the expected recovery in the third quarter of the year due to many controllable factors. He continued that BT substrate demand for processing handset chips will stay in low gear in 2023, particularly for Android smartphones, but is expected to rebound in 2024.
In response to the PCB supply chain relocating production to Southeast Asia from China, Tseng said most PCB makers have chosen Thailand as their new production base, and some select Malaysia or Vietnam, while India will probably emerge as a new choice in several years. But he stressed that relocation cannot be done in short time, and it will take at least 3-4 years for new plant management, whether in Southeast Asia or South Asia, to become mature.
Unimicron is proceeding with production deployment in Thailand, and plans to manufacture some specific products at its facilities in Taiwan, China and the Southeast Asian country to diversify production risks, Tseng disclosed, believing that high-tech and military applications will be subject to stricter production requirements from customers.
Article translated by Willis Ke
