Japanese semiconductor firms are pivoting toward advanced packaging and alternative lithography as TSMC extends its scale advantage in artificial intelligence chips. TSMC's 3nm and 2nm capacity is largely locked in. Advanced packaging now contributes a growing share of sales. The company is on track to see annual revenue exceed US$250 billion around 2029 or 2030. That widening gap has pushed Japanese companies to focus on panel-level packaging and nanoimprint technologies. Both emerged at SEMICON Japan 2025 as key levers to bypass manufacturing bottlenecks and secure a foothold in the fast-expanding AI accelerator supply chain

Artificial intelligence continues to be the central force behind the upcoming productivity revolution. Yet in the US, foundational energy constraints threaten to stall progress. The primary obstacle is not a shortage of semiconductor chips or inadequate computing capacity. It is a more fundamental resource: electricity. Increasing demand from AI data centers (AIDCs) is straining the nation's electric grid. It is testing the limits of social tolerance

The global semiconductor market is projected to reach US$1 trillion as early as 2026, significantly ahead of previous industry forecasts targeting 2030. The World Semiconductor Trade Statistics (WSTS) forecast, released in December 2024, expects growth to be driven predominantly by logic chips, including GPUs and AI accelerators. Memory markets are poised for the steepest increase

The biggest recent news in AI chip development is Nvidia's non-exclusive technology licensing agreement with Groq. Nvidia invested US$20 billion to acquire Groq's technology license and onboard its core engineering team

On December 30, Chinese AI company Z.ai launched a share sale to raise HK$4.35 billion (approx. US$560 million), aiming to become the first large language model (LLM) developer listed in Hong Kong amid a tech IPO surge, with a scheduled listing for January 8, 2026. Meanwhile, Z.ai has recently launched its latest open-source model, GLM-4.7, signaling a shift toward enterprise-focused AI and broader global adoption. As the company prepares for a 2026 IPO, the release highlights the growing influence of independent developers in a market increasingly shaped by hyperscale competitors and ecosystem distribution

When the Manhattan Project mobilized the full weight of the American state in 1945 to unlock atomic energy, it revealed something humanity had not fully grasped before: once a scientific breakthrough is absorbed into national strategy, its impact can far exceed any single industry or technology. Eighty years later, the US is attempting to recreate that logic—this time around artificial intelligence (AI)

Facing US restrictions on high-end computing products, China is restructuring its AI chip industry by advancing GPU, TPU, and NPU technologies simultaneously. Domestic firms struggle to match Nvidia's software ecosystem but seek breakthroughs with TPUs for efficiency and NPUs for edge applications

TSMC is navigating a complex landscape of export controls and domestic competition as speculation grows around its second Kumamoto factory. The key question: will the Japanese facility produce advanced 2nm chips to fuel the nation's artificial intelligence ambitions

After briefly approaching a US$5 trillion market capitalisation, Nvidia spent 2025 deploying capital at an unprecedented pace, backing Groq, OpenAI, Nokia, Synopsys, and Intel through technology deals, equity stakes, and strategic partnerships. The objective is straightforward: convert AI-driven cash inflows into a durable, structural influence across the AI ecosystem

In recent years, Foxconn has steadily expanded its ambitions in electric vehicles, moving beyond its traditional role as a platform provider and contract manufacturer toward the consumer-facing end of the market. Through its subsidiary Foxtron—operating under the formal name Hon Hai Advanced Industry—the group has begun directly running an EV business in Taiwan. Earlier this month, Foxtron hosted an online launch event, unveiling three new EV models simultaneously

After attending the 2025 Guangzhou Auto Show, DIGITIMES analyzed the latest strategies unveiled by leading automakers and suppliers in two pivotal areas: energy replenishment technologies and advanced intelligent driving. The conclusion was hard to miss. Chinese carmakers have accumulated deep technical capabilities in both domains and are moving steadily toward a long-held ambition: making electric vehicles refuel as quickly as gasoline cars, while bringing high-level autonomous driving into everyday use

SpaceX is widely expected to pursue an initial public offering in mid to late 2026. In anticipation, investors have increasingly tied the company's long-term growth story to the idea of orbital—or space-based—data centers, making the concept one of the most closely watched themes in capital markets

The long-rumored transfer of Luxgen, the automotive brand under Yulon Motor, to Foxtron Vehicle Technologies—a joint venture between Foxconn and Yulon—was formally confirmed on the evening of December 19. The announcement has drawn intense scrutiny from both financial markets and the manufacturing sector, as its ripple effects across Taiwan's automotive supply chain continue to unfold

The isolation of graphene in 2004 sparked widespread expectations that two-dimensional (2D) materials could fundamentally reshape electronic devices. Graphene and transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) have since enabled progress in niche applications and research prototypes. Yet their impact on mainstream logic devices remains limited. The long-anticipated use of 2D materials to sustain Moore's Law through transistor channel integration has yet to materialize at scale

Former COO of TSMC and a veteran semiconductor industry leader, J.K. Wang, shared insights from his 30-plus-year career at the company in an exclusive interview with DIGITIMES' IC Broadcasting podcast, marking his first media interview since retirement