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Tuesday 19 May 2026
Samsung narrows bonus gap as payout split threatens strike deal
Samsung Electronics and its South Korean labor union resumed talks on May 19 in a last-ditch effort to avert an 18-day strike set to begin May 21, with the two sides reportedly closing in on some differences
LATEST STORIES
Wednesday 20 May 2026
Rare-earth shadows Boston Dynamics' Atlas ambitions ahead of IPO
Hyundai Motor Group's humanoid robot ambitions are moving closer to commercialization, with Boston Dynamics preparing for a broader capital-market push and factory deployment of its Atlas robot. But analysts warn that China's control over rare-earth supply chains could become a key risk as the company looks to scale production
Wednesday 20 May 2026
China's OSATs chase bigger role as AI chips strain packaging supply

China's OSAT providers are trying to move deeper into advanced packaging as artificial intelligence (AI) demand strains global chip packaging supply, creating an opening for companies that have long played a lower-profile role in the semiconductor value chain

Wednesday 20 May 2026
As Hormuz crisis hits South Korea, Arctic route gains strategic weight
South Korea depends on the Middle East for 70% of its crude oil, and relies heavily on oil refining, petrochemicals, and power generation in its industrial sector. As a result, Iran's blockade of the Strait of Hormuz has led to wide-ranging pressures on South Korea's economic security
Wednesday 20 May 2026
CXMT profit surge shows limits of China's DRAM push
ChangXin Memory Technologies (CXMT) is approaching its planned STAR Market IPO with sharply stronger earnings, as a global memory upcycle helps China's leading DRAM maker move closer to offsetting years of accumulated losses
Wednesday 20 May 2026
Japan's startup boom draws global capital as top US tech firms accelerate Asia pivot
Plug and Play has closed a 6 billion Japanese yen fund — approximately US$40 million — making it one of the largest first-time seed funds ever raised in Japan, the firm announced on the first day of the Plug and Play May Summit in Sunnyvale
Tuesday 19 May 2026
TDK expands bonding equipment investment, launches first mass production of nanocomposite materials
Japanese electronic components manufacturer TDK will make its largest-ever capital investment in fiscal 2026, running from April 2026 to March 2027, to address surging demand related to artificial intelligence (AI), focusing on batteries, hard disk drive (HDD) components, and multilayer ceramic capacitors (MLCC)
Tuesday 19 May 2026
Rising memory costs hit China's OLED suppliers harder than Korean rivals
Rising memory prices are squeezing the smartphone OLED panel market. Chinese suppliers are feeling it more than their Korean rivals, as handset makers scale back production plans
Tuesday 19 May 2026
Samsung turns to health features as Galaxy Watch loses ground to Chinese rivals
Samsung Electronics is putting health care at the center of its smartwatch strategy as Chinese rivals Huawei and Xiaomi gain ground in the global wearables market
Tuesday 19 May 2026
China doubles down on AI-driven manufacturing upgrade
Chinese officials have renewed calls to integrate artificial intelligence (AI) more deeply into manufacturing as Beijing seeks to modernize traditional industries, strengthen industrial competitiveness, and cultivate new growth drivers
Tuesday 19 May 2026
Baidu says AI is now the majority of its business
Baidu said its core AI businesses became the majority of the company's revenue in the first quarter of 2026, driven by rapid growth in AI cloud infrastructure, expanded foundation-model support on its model-as-a-service platform Qianfan, and stronger commercial adoption of its Kunlunxin AI chips
Tuesday 19 May 2026
Analysts divided on Baidu's AI monetization as cloud growth offsets ad weakness
Analysts offered mixed assessments of Baidu after the Chinese internet company posted first-quarter revenue that topped market expectations, with some pointing to stronger AI monetization. In contrast, others warned that profitability remains under pressure from rising investment and lower-margin AI businesses
Tuesday 19 May 2026
Samsung, SK Hynix face chipmaking chemical squeeze as China feedstock costs surge
Prices for semiconductor-grade hydrogen fluoride supplied to Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix are expected to rise sharply between late June and July, as higher costs for a key China-sourced raw material ripple through South Korea's chip supply chain, according to industry sources cited by The Elec
Tuesday 19 May 2026
Commentary: Sanctions reshaped China's foundry sector — just not in the way markets expected
China's foundry sector is charting a different course as the global semiconductor market remains focused on AI GPUs, the 2nm process node, and advanced packaging. Led by Semiconductor Manufacturing International (SMIC) and Hua Hong Semiconductor, domestic Chinese foundries have not stalled under US sanctions; instead, they are accelerating efforts to build a China-specific foundry ecosystem amid the AI boom, recovering demand for mature nodes, and a push for supply-chain self-reliance
Monday 18 May 2026
South Korea's A2Z bets on autonomous buses as Waymo, Baidu's Apollo Go dominate robotaxi race

As Waymo in the US and Baidu's Apollo Go in China expand robotaxi services on public roads, South Korea's autonomous-driving industry is under pressure to find a viable route of its own

Monday 18 May 2026
SK Hynix speeds Yongin fab buildout as memory crunch fuels capacity race

SK Hynix is accelerating construction at its Yongin Semiconductor Cluster, as a tightening memory market pushes South Korea's top chipmakers to move faster on long-term capacity plans