It has been half a century since the semiconductor industry began in the 1970s. At first, semiconductors were just a supporting component developed by large corporations to enhance the functionality of their system products. However, the formation of the industry began with Intel in Silicon Valley.

Amid the 2023 global economic downturn, many capital investments retracted, but experts stress that this period offers a strategic opportunity for corporate investment and the infusion of innovative energy.

Generative AI was behind Nvidia's 240% surge in market cap in 2023, and the effect also trickled down to foundry manufacturers and packaging & testing service providers in the AI chip supply chain. The expected surge in mature and legacy node chips from China in the next few years has also inspired UMC to take steps to diversify its business. These trends are well captured by DIGITIMES Asia's 2023 Semiconductor Market Cap 100 report.

2030 will inaugurate a "Silicon Era" of quarter-finals competition among industrial nations, as applications such as electrical vehicles, connected cars, and artificial intelligence (AI) are advancing at exponential speeds.

In the dynamically shifting terrain of technological advancement, the influence of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in molding various industries is becoming more pronounced and pivotal. ProductCon, a leading product conference in San Francisco, provided profound insights into this trend. The conference underscored the critical importance of AI in product development and management, evidenced by the sessions focused on its wide-ranging implications and practical applications. This article aims to provide a comprehensive review of AI's diverse industry usage cases, shedding light on its transformative impact and future potential.

In the decade since AlphaGo was introduced, neural networks in machine learning have been gradually applied to various industrial and commercial scenarios. One of the applications related to material development is the optimization of the material production process, which has been in industrial practice for some time.

China's semiconductor firms in the IC packaging & testing, equipment, foundry, and IC design industries performed much better than their IDM, materials, optoelectronics, and memory compatriots in terms of market capitalization in 2023, according to DIGITIMES Asia 2023 top 100 semiconductor market cap ranking report. Recent sales reports also reflect a robust recovery of business on the way.

Although prices in December 2023 continued to decline, Chinese and Taiwanese panel manufacturers plan to expand production cuts during the Lunar New Year period.

With the rapid development of generative AI and large language model (LLM) applications, the data center AI chip market size will also leap upward in 2023. While competitors AMD and Intel are set to get a piece of that pie, Nvidia, a dominant leader in the data center AI chip market, seems more interested in making new pies.

At the close of 2023, it's reported that TSMC and Samsung will delay the mass production of 4nm chips at their new fabs in the US from 2024 to 2025, posing a challenge to the Biden administration's semiconductor expansion efforts. Intel's move to commence 2nm production in 2024 has been hailed as a critical step, aligning with the US Chips and Science Act goals, including widening its semiconductor tech gap with China through commercializing sub-2nm technology.

As 2023 draws to a close, Open Radio Access Network (O-RAN), once seen as a promising innovation, has witnessed limited progress amid a global economic slowdown. Omdia estimates predict an 11% annual decline in the global RAN market in 2023, impacting new players entering the O-RAN industry. However, a significant development is AT&T's announcement of a five-year, US$14 billion deal with Ericsson to deploy an O-RAN architecture, raising questions about the openness of the collaboration.

Intel has reportedly acquired 6 high-NA EUV lithography machines from ASML, which is scheduled for shipment in 2024, according to South Korean media outlets. Intel's fast adoption of the high-NA EUVs reflects its ambition to grab the 2nm node foundry market share before TSMC can do it.

China's automotive industry reached a milestone in 2023. The country became the world's largest car exporter this year and saw the homegrown automakers occupy over 50% of the domestic market share for the first time. In 2024, Chinese carmakers will continue their offense, causing a reshuffle in the EV and automotive sectors worldwide.

With photonic integrated circuits, above all silicon photonics, seeing a wave of industry hype owing to their vast potential in the datacom and telecom applications, relevant suppliers in Taiwan's semiconductor and electronics manufacturing sector have been gearing up for the opportunities, particularly as international photonics players increasingly seek to tap into Taiwanese chip manufacturing prowess.

There are three ways to grow the economic scale in the modern-day semiconductor industry: continuous miniaturization of processes, advanced packaging, and the application of new materials.