Applied Materials has entered the semiconductor glass substrate market, reportedly developing the industry's most advanced lithography equipment dedicated to this emerging segment. According to South Korea's ET News, the tools will be first supplied to Absolics, a subsidiary of SKC, for its upcoming facility in Georgia, US

Samsung Electro-Mechanics announced that preparations for its glass substrate sample production line are nearing completion, with plans to begin supplying samples to two to three major US technology firms in 2025, according to ET News. The company is also deepening strategic collaboration with Samsung Electronics, particularly in areas related to the construction of a glass interposer supply chain

The US Department of Commerce (DOC) is tightening export restrictions on electronic design automation (EDA) software for China, shifting from broad bans to case-by-case licensing. Sources indicate this could lead to a full suspension of services by Synopsys, Cadence, and Siemens EDA, affecting all Chinese chip design clients, not just those working on 3nm nodes

These are the most-read DIGITIMES Asia stories from May 26 to June 1. Top highlights include Huawei's 5nm HarmonyOS PC as a milestone in China's chip self-sufficiency, Wolfspeed's looming bankruptcy threatening Renesas' US$2 billion SiC deal, China's EUV-free 5nm efforts, mounting export control risks, Samsung Electronics' delayed entry into Nvidia's HBM3E supply chain, and Malaysia's US$270 billion pivot to IC design and advanced packaging

The Trump administration plans to broaden restrictions on China's tech sector with new regulations to capture subsidiaries of companies under US curbs

At Computex 2025, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang quipped, "The more you buy, the more you save" — a punchline that underscored the escalating arms race in AI infrastructure. According to Yicai, the AI boom is driving global tech firms to ramp up investments in data centers and compute capacity. Nvidia now estimates enterprise AI infrastructure spending is nearing the trillion-dollar threshold

South Korea's Samyang Holdings, a conglomerate traditionally rooted in food and chemicals, is setting its sights on Japan's semiconductor supply chain as part of a strategic pivot into high-growth industries

D-Link Corporation is defying the slowdown in global networking demand triggered by inflation and geopolitical tensions. Backed by its global distribution network, the company continues to post stable revenue. Its "Made in Taiwan" strategy—anchored in the belief that "cybersecurity is national security"—recently secured a five-year supply deal with a US client

Facing mounting pressure from high US tariffs and a prolonged global economic slowdown, Samsung Electronics has reportedly activated a crisis management framework and signed a credit line agreement worth approximately KRW10 trillion (US$7.27 billion) with several of South Korea's leading commercial banks

Nvidia and AMD are set to launch a new wave of downgraded AI GPUs for the Chinese market starting in the third quarter of 2025, according to supply chain sources. These compliance-driven chips are engineered to meet tightening US export rules while still supporting popular Chinese AI models like DeepSeek

OpenAI expanded its Asian presence to Seoul in May 2025, marking its third regional office after Japan and Singapore as the ChatGPT maker seeks to capitalize on South Korea's rapidly growing AI adoption and comprehensive technology ecosystem

China's semiconductor sector was abuzz in late May 2025 by reports that Siemens EDA received a notice from the US Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) instructing it to halt all electronic design automation (EDA) services and support to Chinese clients. Several Chinese media outlets and local industry sources alleged that Siemens had already begun blocking regional access to its technical websites

Amid the escalating US-China tech war and supply chain risks, the trend of "de-Nvidia-ization" is rapidly spreading within China's computing power industry. This shift represents not only a technological transformation but also a comprehensive change encompassing policy, technology, ecosystem, and market dynamics

The US has once again delayed the imposition of a 50% tariff on European imports, following a phone call between US President Donald Trump and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. The tariff implementation date has been postponed to July 9, 2025. However, Trump's broader tariff strategy faced a significant legal setback when the US Court of International Trade ruled on May 28, 2025, that the president lacked authority to introduce his April 2nd "liberation day" tariff scheme using emergency economic powers legislation, potentially throwing the administration's global trade policy into disarray. Meanwhile, the existing US tariffs on Chinese goods—currently totaling around 40%—are expected to remain in place for now, with China maintaining reciprocal tariffs of approximately 25% on American imports. Despite this temporary détente, China's manufacturing sector continues to suffer, with GDP growth for 2025 projected to fall below 5%