DIGITIMES: News and Insight of the Global Supply Chain

Analysis: Five years of US polysilicon imports show why Washington set the price floor at $21

DIGITIMES — Fri, 7 Aug 2026 01:04:17 GMT

US imports of high-purity polysilicon jumped to US$190 million in 2025. Still, the bigger story is in the volume: 6,791 tonnes, more than five times the 1,286 tonnes imported in 2024, according to UN Comtrade trade data.

Analysis: Trump’s polysilicon tariffs split solar industry into winners and losers

DIGITIMES — Fri, 7 Aug 2026 01:03:26 GMT

US President Donald Trump signed a proclamation on August 6 imposing minimum import prices and a 15% tariff on polysilicon and its derivatives, a move that hands a durable pricing advantage to US and non-Chinese producers while squeezing Chinese manufacturers out of price competitiveness in the American market.

Nvidia seeks China AI-RAN partners to bring GPU computing into 6G networks

DIGITIMES — Fri, 7 Aug 2026 00:05:24 GMT

Nvidia is seeking Chinese telecom equipment partners to develop 6G AI radio access network base stations for overseas markets, according to Chinese media reports, as the chipmaker looks to extend its computing platform beyond data centres and into wireless networks and edge AI infrastructure.

Commentary: Why playing it safe could cost Taiwan the next battery boom

Scarlett Yu — Fri, 7 Aug 2026 00:04:53 GMT

From smartphones and smartwatches to emerging AI glasses, electric vehicles, autonomous driving systems, and the rapidly expanding drone industry, batteries have become the indispensable power source behind virtually every next-generation technology. More than just the "heart" of these products, batteries have also become one of the world's largest strategic growth markets.

Inventec forecasts weaker notebook shipments as server growth continues in the third quarter

DIGITIMES — Fri, 7 Aug 2026 00:03:23 GMT

Inventec said notebook shipments will soften in the third quarter after customers pulled in orders during the first half, lifting volumes above expectations, while server shipments are set to keep rising. The Taiwanese electronics maker reported that it shipped 1.6 million notebook units in July, down from 2.4 million in June, and expects third-quarter notebook shipments to fall by a single-digit percentage from the second quarter.

Naver speeds up defense AI push, flags data and procurement hurdles

Lily Hess — Fri, 7 Aug 2026 00:02:36 GMT

South Korean internet giant Naver is accelerating its move into defense AI after falling short in the country's independent AI foundation model race, seeing the sector as its next growth engine. Through Naver Cloud, the company has set up a dedicated defense AI team and dispatched field engineers into military systems for customized deployments.

Chicony Electronics lifts second-quarter profit on commercial demand and AI products

DIGITIMES — Fri, 7 Aug 2026 00:01:59 GMT

Chicony Electronics reported stronger second-quarter earnings on August 5 as demand from the commercial market outpaced consumer spending. The Taiwanese electronics maker said higher-end products such as smart video conferencing systems and gaming keyboards helped improve its profit mix even as DRAM-related cost pressure remained a drag on end-market demand.

Analysis: Volkswagen-Gotion standoff highlights China's growing leverage in EV batteries

Scarlett Yu — Fri, 7 Aug 2026 00:01:33 GMT

Unlike China's automakers—whose supply chains operate with the flexibility and rapid iteration more commonly associated with the consumer electronics and ICT industries—automakers in Europe, the US, Japan, and South Korea have traditionally maintained strong bargaining power over critical components through rigorous contracts and tightly controlled supply chain management. Lithium batteries have historically been no exception.

Taiwan raises 2027 central government spending to NT$3.6 trillion

DIGITIMES — Fri, 7 Aug 2026 00:00:49 GMT

Taiwan's central government said it would lift 2027 spending to NT$3.6 trillion, as President Lai Ching-te outlined a budget plan aimed at boosting industrial upgrading, technological innovation, and public welfare. The announcement followed a strong second quarter for Taiwan's electronics and information and communications shipments, which helped drive economic growth to 12.9%.

Chinese optical suppliers confront FCC threat after US$19.1B sell-off

DIGITIMES — Fri, 7 Aug 2026 00:00:20 GMT

Chinese optical transceiver suppliers are trying to calm investors after reports that the US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) may restrict new China-made data-center components, threatening a supply chain central to global AI infrastructure.

NEO seeks partner by end-2026 for fivefold-density X-SRAM

Sherri Wang — Thu, 6 Aug 2026 23:59:46 GMT

AI memory startup NEO Semiconductor has unveiled X-SRAM, a new architecture designed to address the difficulty of scaling conventional SRAM at advanced logic process nodes.

Huawei's Richard Yu warns of smartphone price hikes as memory costs soar

DIGITIMES — Thu, 6 Aug 2026 23:59:01 GMT

Huawei executive director and Consumer Business Group chairman Richard Yu warned on August 5 that sharply rising memory costs could trigger widespread smartphone price increases, saying handset makers risk losses if they continue selling devices at previous price levels.

Why countering drones is the ultimate stress test for on-device AI

Willis Ke — Thu, 6 Aug 2026 23:58:39 GMT

Drones, robots and self-driving vehicles are becoming the new proving ground for artificial intelligence. Machines are taking on more decision-making themselves, rather than relying on the cloud. The reason is speed. When a system has to react in milliseconds, waiting on a round trip to external servers is not an option, whether it's avoiding a collision or detecting an unauthorized drone. Elan Microelectronics chairman I-hau Yeh says this shift, moving AI processing from edge computing directly onto the device itself, is becoming essential for unmanned systems. Few applications demand more speed and accuracy than counter-unmanned aircraft systems, or C-UAS: technology built to detect and respond to unauthorized drones.

Ex-White House official urges South Korea to avoid excessive digital regulation

Rodney Chan — Thu, 6 Aug 2026 23:58:12 GMT

Former White House National Security Council chief of staff Alexander Gray has called on South Korea to deepen supply chain cooperation with the US and avoid following the European Union's digital regulation path.

Hughes files for Chapter 11 as Starlink reshapes satellite broadband

DIGITIMES — Thu, 6 Aug 2026 23:57:39 GMT

EchoStar Group's broadband business subsidiary Hughes Satellite Systems filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the US on August 3, saying it will use the process to reduce debt and shift more of its focus to enterprise, government, and defense customers. Service is expected to continue during the restructuring.

Transcend warns memory shortage could extend through 2027

DIGITIMES — Thu, 6 Aug 2026 23:57:27 GMT

Transcend Information said the global memory shortage remained severe and could persist through 2027, with little sign of improvement in 2026. The Taiwanese storage maker said upstream suppliers had warned that supply in 2027 could be even tighter than in 2026, keeping price increases in place for an extended period.

Taiwan business optimism eases in the third quarter as supply chains soften

DIGITIMES — Thu, 6 Aug 2026 23:57:08 GMT

Dun & Bradstreet said Taiwan business confidence slipped slightly in the third quarter of 2026, with its Taiwan Business Optimism Insights survey measuring an overall index of 107. The reading was down 0.8% from the previous quarter but remained 4.5% higher than a year earlier, pointing to a modest cooldown rather than a broad decline.

Metaage 1H26 profit surges 330% on AI-driven enterprise demand

DIGITIMES — Thu, 6 Aug 2026 23:56:53 GMT

Metaage, a Qisda group company, reported sharply higher results for the first half of 2026 as demand tied to artificial intelligence accelerated across enterprise customers. The board approved the consolidated financial report for the second quarter of 2026, showing 1H26 revenue of about NT$12.6 billion, up 19% from NT$10.6 billion a year earlier, while net profit attributable to the parent company rose to about NT$349 million.

V5 July revenue reaches NT$273 million on AI chip demand, packaging expansion

DIGITIMES — Thu, 6 Aug 2026 23:56:34 GMT

V5 Technologies reported record consolidated revenue of NT$273 million in July 2026, as demand for AI chips and semiconductor packaging capacity expansion lifted orders. Revenue rose 7.78% from June and 63.4% from a year earlier, while revenue for the first seven months of 2026 climbed to NT$1.692 billion, up 86.26% from NT$908 million in the same period of 2025.

Apple scrambles to secure DRAM as US$1 billion worth of iPhone 18 chips reportedly await packaging

DIGITIMES — Thu, 6 Aug 2026 09:21:15 GMT

Apple and its manufacturing partners are rushing to secure mobile DRAM ahead of the expected launch of the iPhone 18 lineup, as about US$1 billion worth of next-generation processors reportedly remain unable to move into packaging without sufficient memory supply.

Global smartphone AP industry, 2Q 2026: 2nm and memory costs to weigh on 3Q26 shipments

DIGITIMES — Thu, 6 Aug 2026 09:07:06 GMT

Global smartphone AP industry, 2Q 2026: 2nm and memory costs to weigh on 3Q26 shipments

Samsung to pay Netlist up to US$897 million to settle memory patent dispute

DIGITIMES — Thu, 6 Aug 2026 08:42:40 GMT

Samsung Electronics will pay Netlist up to US$897 million in gross licensing fees over five years under a series of agreements that settle years of litigation and renew a commercial relationship covering server memory, high-bandwidth memory (HBM), product supply, and technology cooperation.

CHT Security eyes double-digit full year growth with AI-driven cyber defense opportunities

Kevin Wang — Thu, 6 Aug 2026 08:34:00 GMT

CHT Security posted strong results for the first half of 2026, with consolidated revenue rising 21% year-on-year to NT$1.182 billion (US$36.6 million), net profit after tax growing 13% year-on-year to NT$251 million, and earnings per share of NT$6.16. Both revenue and profit set new highs for the period, driven by surging corporate cybersecurity demand amid growing AI adoption. Additionally, July revenue rose 9% year-on-year to NT$210 million, bringing cumulative revenue for the first seven months of the year to NT$1.392 billion, up 19% year-on-year and also marking a new high.

Unitree's impending IPO draws Meituan and Tencent as investors

Levi Li — Thu, 6 Aug 2026 08:20:00 GMT

Chinese robotics company Unitree is entering a critical stage in its initial public offering. The IPO is expected to raise about CNY4.2 billion (approximately US$622 million), while the company's post-listing valuation could range from CNY40 billion to CNY50 billion. It would become the first company on China's A-share market whose primary investment theme is humanoid robotics.

Largan July 2026 revenue rises 11% as CPO samples progress

Charlene Chen — Thu, 6 Aug 2026 08:15:25 GMT

Largan announced on August 5 that July revenue reached NT$4.877 billion (US$150.8 million), up 31% month-over-month and 11% year-over-year. For the first seven months, consolidated revenue totaled NT$34.086 billion, up 7% year-over-year, as the company entered the traditional peak season.

Taiwan unveils four semiconductor pillars for Smart Nation 2.0 plan

Lily Hess — Thu, 6 Aug 2026 08:15:13 GMT

On August 5, Taiwan's National Science and Technology Council said it had completed the central government's 2027 budget plan, with NT$182.3 billion (US$5.7 billion) earmarked for technology spending, up about 9.5% from 2026. The biggest increase goes to sovereign AI computing power and infrastructure as Taipei pushes ahead with its Smart Nation 2.0 initiative.

Ample Electronic posts record July sales as MLCC demand strengthens

DIGITIMES — Thu, 6 Aug 2026 08:12:48 GMT

Ample Electronic, a supplier of conductive paste materials for passive components, said strong artificial intelligence demand has helped drive a hot multilayer ceramic capacitor market and pushed customer orders higher. The Taiwan-based company reported July consolidated revenue of NT$269 million(US$8.33 million), a record high, while earnings per share for the second quarter of 2025 also reached a quarterly peak as downstream demand accelerated.

Tesla taps Samsung Electro-Mechanics, LG Innotek for Cybercab camera modules, report says

DIGITIMES — Thu, 6 Aug 2026 07:59:56 GMT

Tesla has reportedly selected Samsung Electro-Mechanics and LG Innotek to supply camera modules for the Cybercab, a move that would give the South Korean suppliers a foothold in the automaker's purpose-built robotaxi as both expand beyond smartphones into automotive and physical AI applications.

Rashi Peripherals partners with Japan's Restar to build out India semiconductor business

DIGITIMES — Thu, 6 Aug 2026 07:55:00 GMT

Rashi Peripherals, a national distribution partner for global technology brands in India, has entered a joint venture with Japanese electronics and technology company Restar Corporation. The move pushes the distributor beyond product distribution into engineering, design, and field application support for India's manufacturing sector, according to ScanX, IT Voice India, and CRN Asia.

Primax Electronics posts higher 2Q revenue as margins come under pressure

DIGITIMES — Thu, 6 Aug 2026 07:54:58 GMT

Primax Electronics reported stronger second-quarter 2026 consolidated revenue on the back of robust shipments from new consumer audio programs and contributions from professional audio projects, while profit metrics weakened under pressure from a stronger yuan, rising component costs and product-mix changes. The Taiwan-based electronics maker said it was adopting a more cautious view of the third quarter as it expanded into AIoT, smart surveillance and robotics.

ByteDance founder shuns AI distillation, wary of more US scrutiny

DIGITIMES — Thu, 6 Aug 2026 07:48:53 GMT

ByteDance founder Zhang Yiming recently said that the company would not use distillation to train its AI models, even if they fall behind those of other Chinese rivals. His comments come as China's advances in AI have accelerated faster than expected, leading to accusations that its developers are training them based on outputs from US models.

Lo Hsung to debut self-developed robot joint module at Automation Exhibition

DIGITIMES — Thu, 6 Aug 2026 07:44:57 GMT

Lo Hsung, a Qisda subsidiary, will unveil its first self-developed ACTDG45-O robot joint module at the 2026 Taipei International Industrial Automation Exhibition. The company said the product was built for robotic arms, rotary worktables, high-precision positioning modules, and semiconductor automation equipment as robots and automation systems move toward higher precision, greater torque, and more compact designs.

Elite Semiconductor rides niche DRAM price hikes

Jingyue Hsiao — Thu, 6 Aug 2026 07:24:52 GMT

Elite Semiconductor Microelectronics Technology (ESMT) has benefited from a severe supply shortage in the niche memory market. July revenue jumped 40% from June to a monthly record, extending an explosive second-quarter 2026 performance. The company said higher product prices and tighter supply-demand conditions are driving the surge, and it expects the extreme capacity crunch to continue, with the second half of the year likely to outperform the first half.

GlobalFoundries 2Q analysis 2/2: US subsidies, Taiwan rhetoric and GF's silicon photonics test

DIGITIMES — Thu, 6 Aug 2026 07:23:45 GMT

GlobalFoundries (GF) often presents itself as an essential pillar of US semiconductor sovereignty. That claim is partly true, but requires qualification.

GlobalFoundries 2Q analysis 1/2: AI optics power earnings beat and margin gains

DIGITIMES — Thu, 6 Aug 2026 07:23:42 GMT

GlobalFoundries reported stronger-than-expected second-quarter results, supported by rapid growth in AI-related optical networking and a richer mix of higher-margin technologies.

DIGITIMES: News and Insight of the Global Supply Chain

Analysis: Five years of US polysilicon imports show why Washington set the price floor at $21

Analysis: Trump&rsquo;s polysilicon tariffs split solar industry into winners and losers

Nvidia seeks China AI-RAN partners to bring GPU computing into 6G networks

Commentary: Why playing it safe could cost Taiwan the next battery boom

Inventec forecasts weaker notebook shipments as server growth continues in the third quarter

Naver speeds up defense AI push, flags data and procurement hurdles

Chicony Electronics lifts second-quarter profit on commercial demand and AI products

Analysis: Volkswagen-Gotion standoff highlights China's growing leverage in EV batteries

Taiwan raises 2027 central government spending to NT$3.6 trillion

Chinese optical suppliers confront FCC threat after US$19.1B sell-off

NEO seeks partner by end-2026 for fivefold-density X-SRAM

Huawei's Richard Yu warns of smartphone price hikes as memory costs soar

Why countering drones is the ultimate stress test for on-device AI

Ex-White House official urges South Korea to avoid excessive digital regulation

Hughes files for Chapter 11 as Starlink reshapes satellite broadband

Transcend warns memory shortage could extend through 2027

Taiwan business optimism eases in the third quarter as supply chains soften

Metaage 1H26 profit surges 330% on AI-driven enterprise demand

V5 July revenue reaches NT$273 million on AI chip demand, packaging expansion

Apple scrambles to secure DRAM as US$1 billion worth of iPhone 18 chips reportedly await packaging

Global smartphone AP industry, 2Q 2026: 2nm and memory costs to weigh on 3Q26 shipments

Samsung to pay Netlist up to US$897 million to settle memory patent dispute

CHT Security eyes double-digit full year growth with AI-driven cyber defense opportunities

Unitree's impending IPO draws Meituan and Tencent as investors

Largan July 2026 revenue rises 11% as CPO samples progress

Taiwan unveils four semiconductor pillars for Smart Nation 2.0 plan

Ample Electronic posts record July sales as MLCC demand strengthens

Tesla taps Samsung Electro-Mechanics, LG Innotek for Cybercab camera modules, report says

Rashi Peripherals partners with Japan's Restar to build out India semiconductor business

Primax Electronics posts higher 2Q revenue as margins come under pressure

ByteDance founder shuns AI distillation, wary of more US scrutiny

Lo Hsung to debut self-developed robot joint module at Automation Exhibition

Elite Semiconductor rides niche DRAM price hikes

GlobalFoundries 2Q analysis 2/2: US subsidies, Taiwan rhetoric and GF's silicon photonics test

GlobalFoundries 2Q analysis 1/2: AI optics power earnings beat and margin gains

Analysis: Trump’s polysilicon tariffs split solar industry into winners and losers