DIGITIMES Asia: News and Insight of the Global Supply Chain

MediaTek unveils active AI smart cockpit, advancing AI-defined vehicles

Eifeh Strom — Mon, 27 Apr 2026 03:56:11 GMT

MediaTek unveiled its Dimensity Auto "active AI smart cockpit" solution at the 2026 Beijing International Automotive Exhibition. The launch marks a significant step toward the era of AI-defined vehicles. The company also showcased in-vehicle 3A entertainment and communication solutions built on the Dimensity Auto platform, alongside its ecosystem partners.

Singapore-washing is dead: China cuts off US tech investment

DIGITIMES — Mon, 27 Apr 2026 03:54:33 GMT

"Singapore-washing" — the tactic of Chinese technology firms re-domiciling in the city-state to bypass geopolitical scrutiny — is facing an existential threat. China has moved to implement aggressive new capital controls following a multi-agency probe into Meta's US$2 billion acquisition of AI startup Manus. Bloomberg reports that Chinese officials have categorized the deal as a "leakage" of sensitive homegrown technology to a geopolitical rival.

Nio pushes into chipmaking to cut reliance on Nvidia

Elaine Chen — Mon, 27 Apr 2026 03:47:51 GMT

Nio's founder, chairman, and chief executive, William Li, said on April 24 that the company is accelerating efforts to develop its own automotive chips, part of a broader strategy to sharpen its technological edge, improve margins, and reduce reliance on suppliers such as Nvidia.

Naver Cloud and HanmiGlobal target global data center expansion amid AI infrastructure race

DIGITIMES — Mon, 27 Apr 2026 03:47:30 GMT

South Korea's Naver Cloud and construction project management firm HanmiGlobal have formed a strategic alliance to jointly pursue large-scale data center projects overseas, with a particular focus on Saudi Arabia and other emerging markets.

Formosa 2 secures NT$58.9 billion refinancing, marking Taiwan's offshore wind maturity

Eifeh Strom — Mon, 27 Apr 2026 03:46:04 GMT

Formosa 2 Wind Power (Formosa 2) held a refinancing ceremony on April 24, announcing the successful completion of a refinancing agreement totaling approximately NT$58.9 billion (approx. US$1.87 billion). Representatives from the company's two major shareholders, Synera Renewable Energy (SRE) and JERA Nex bp, attended the event to witness the milestone.

Quanta bets on speed and scale to power next growth wave

Emily Kuo — Mon, 27 Apr 2026 03:36:47 GMT

Quanta Computer is doubling down on speed, scale, and execution as it heads into 2026, with leadership expressing strong confidence that surging AI server demand will drive another year of record growth, even amid global uncertainty. At Quanta's 38th anniversary celebration, Vice Chairman C.C. Leung emphasized the company's ability to meet increasingly demanding customer expectations. Orders are not only growing in volume, he noted, but also require faster delivery and lower costs. Despite operating at full capacity, he stressed that the company continues to seek even more orders and growth opportunities.

Smart cockpit's next test: Can AI deliver real value?

Elaine Chen — Mon, 27 Apr 2026 03:26:19 GMT

The 2026 Beijing International Automotive Exhibition opened on April 24 with a new focal point: the rapid ascent of large language models (LLMs) into the smart cockpit.

DeepSeek cuts API prices 90%, sets new global low for LLM services

Jingyue Hsiao — Mon, 27 Apr 2026 03:09:21 GMT

DeepSeek's 90% cut to fees for input cache hit, which occurs when the model reuses previously computed results for identical or similar inputs instead of recomputing them, across its API lineup could lower operational costs for global developers and enterprises, especially for long-text and high-frequency applications, potentially accelerating the adoption of locally developed large language models, intensifying price competition with international providers, and reducing barriers to AI-powered services worldwide.

Denso weighs Rohm bid withdrawal as support stalls

DIGITIMES — Mon, 27 Apr 2026 02:54:12 GMT

Japanese auto parts supplier Denso said on April 27 that it is considering all options, including withdrawing its acquisition proposal for chipmaker Rohm, after failing to secure the company's support.

ASE Technology spotlights 18 suppliers at the forefront of a trillion-dollar AI wave

Eifeh Strom — Mon, 27 Apr 2026 02:52:02 GMT

Global outsourced semiconductor assembly and test (OSAT) leader ASE Technology Holding (ASEH) held its 2025 ASE Supplier Award ceremony, inviting more than 100 suppliers of packaging and testing equipment, raw materials, components, and processing, along with its subsidiaries Advanced Semiconductor Engineering (ASE), Siliconware Precision Industries (SPIL), and Universal Scientific Industrial (USI).

TSMC refuses ASML's expensive High-NA EUV equipment, explained

Emily Kuo — Mon, 27 Apr 2026 02:50:38 GMT

ASML has launched its 0.55 High Numerical Aperture Extreme Ultraviolet (High-NA EUV) in an effort to extend Moore's Law. The market had originally expected TSMC to adopt it first, but the company has held back. TSMC Senior Vice President of Global Business Kevin Zhang stated at the North America Technology Symposium that there are currently no plans to introduce High-NA EUV before 2029, mainly because "it's too expensive!" This decision also reflects how TSMC is shifting competition focus from equipment to process integration and cost efficiency.

Weekly news roundup: Micron's Sanand ramp shifts India chip debate; Qualcomm Chief reportedly seeks deals in South Korea

DIGITIMES — Mon, 27 Apr 2026 02:32:54 GMT

Below are the most-read DIGITIMES Asia stories from the week of April 20-27, 2026:

DIGITIMES Insight: Will TSMC's 3nm expansion put Samsung's 2nm bid on the back foot?

Emily Kuo — Mon, 27 Apr 2026 02:30:40 GMT

As the AI buildout accelerates and chipmakers race to secure advanced process capacity, TSMC finds itself in an increasingly commanding position.

Exclusive: As cars go digital, cybersecurity emerges as industry's new battleground

Elaine Chen — Mon, 27 Apr 2026 02:26:36 GMT

As the global automotive industry moves toward deeper integration of electronic and electrical (E/E) architectures, a new axis of competition is emerging: digital sovereignty. Fueled by rising concerns over cybersecurity, control of the software-defined vehicle is rapidly becoming as consequential as mastery of engines once was.

MediaTek ASIC revenue may overtake smartphone chips amid Google's TPU ramps

Sherri Wang — Mon, 27 Apr 2026 02:23:34 GMT

MediaTek's application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) business is drawing market attention as volume production of Google's tensor processing units (TPUs) is expected to ramp from the second half of 2026. Views differ on how fast the segment will grow, though some estimates suggest ASIC revenue could overtake smartphone chips by 2027 to become the company's largest revenue source.

South Korea and Vietnam deepen tech and supply chain cooperation amid global uncertainty

DIGITIMES — Mon, 27 Apr 2026 01:37:08 GMT

South Korea and Vietnam have expanded cooperation across technology, energy, and infrastructure, signing dozens of agreements during Korean President Lee Jae-Myung's visit to Hanoi, as both countries seek to reinforce supply chain resilience amid global volatility.

India roundup: Micron ramp, Dholera SEZ push India toward full-stack chip manufacturing

DIGITIMES — Mon, 27 Apr 2026 01:26:12 GMT

India is accelerating its semiconductor ambitions, from Micron Technology's Sanand ramp to new fabrication and advanced packaging projects, while expanding design partnerships. At the same time, regulatory pressure on Apple, weakening smartphone demand, and solar policy tensions highlight challenges alongside growing global supply-chain integration.

Everlight ramping up in optical communications, supported by automotive and invisible light

Emily Kuo — Sun, 26 Apr 2026 23:18:32 GMT

As global companies race to capture opportunities in AI optical communications and co-packaged optics (CPO), Taiwanese LED and optoelectronics firms are actively transforming and entering the field. Everlight Electronics, a leading LED packaging company, has also begun low-profile positioning, considering investments in related startups and leveraging its strengths in high-end optocouplers to play a key role in optical signal transmission and coupling.

Column: Where does robot training data come from?

Emily Kuo — Sun, 26 Apr 2026 23:18:18 GMT

Across both sides of the Pacific, robot startups and leading laboratories have reached a consensus over the past year that model architecture is no longer the sole focus. Data has become the core competitive resource. Regardless of how technical approaches evolve, most teams eventually encounter the same problem: the shortage of training data.

S-Tech accelerates high-end materials shift, doubles titanium alloy share to target aerospace and US markets

Jingyue Hsiao — Sun, 26 Apr 2026 23:18:00 GMT

S-Tech Corp's shift toward titanium alloys and entry into the US market could reshape global supply for the aerospace and defense sectors, reducing reliance on nickel-based products and mitigating raw-material price risks while influencing inventory cycles and production utilization worldwide.

Taiwan's growing AI and industrial demand reshapes corporate power strategies

Jingyue Hsiao — Sun, 26 Apr 2026 23:17:36 GMT

As AI infrastructure and industrial electricity use rise, Taiwan's shifting power landscape has far-reaching global implications for supply reliability, corporate competitiveness, and carbon-cost exposure. Companies worldwide with local operations or supply chains tied to Taiwanese manufacturing may face higher energy prices, tighter grid constraints, and increased demand for behind-the-meter energy storage and power-quality solutions.

Research insights: tendon-driven dexterous hands are key development factor as humanoids enter home market

Emily Kuo — Sun, 26 Apr 2026 23:17:12 GMT

While humanoid robots application remains a topic of debate, initial deployment is expected to be in structured environmental environments. However, there is large potential in the home and/or commercial market. According to DIGITIMES Research, home environments impose significantly higher requirements on humanoid robots, with dexterous hands being a critical development factor.

Taiwan networking firms set for 11% Q2 growth as Wi-Fi 7 gains traction

Sherri Wang — Sun, 26 Apr 2026 23:16:51 GMT

Global Wi-Fi router shipments are increasingly driven by telecom operators' upgrade cycles and tender deployments rather than consumer demand, with traditional seasonality continuing to weaken. Since 2025, the market has shown a pattern of weaker peak seasons and firmer off-seasons.

NEO Semiconductor advances 3D DRAM with POC validation

Charlene Chen — Sun, 26 Apr 2026 23:16:35 GMT

Driven by AI, demand for high-bandwidth memory (HBM) is surging, causing a supply shortage in DRAM and prompting cloud service providers to pre-book capacity for the next two years. The rising need for larger HBM capacities is expected to grow exponentially, while 3D DRAM technology emerges as a solution to overcome current process scaling limits.

South Korea's telecom giants unveil full-stack AI strategies at WIS 2026, highlighting agents, infrastructure, and 6G

Willis Ke — Sun, 26 Apr 2026 23:16:19 GMT

South Korea's three leading telecom operators—SK Telecom (SKT), KT, and LG U+—signaled a decisive shift beyond connectivity at the World IT Show (WIS) 2026, held April 22–24 in Seoul, unveiling AI-centric strategies spanning agents, applications, and infrastructure as they position themselves as full-stack AI platform providers.

Tesla doubles down on robotaxi and FSD, recasting cars into revenue-generating assets

Levi Li — Sun, 26 Apr 2026 23:15:32 GMT

At its first-quarter 2026 earnings call, Tesla set out a clear shift in strategy: moving the auto industry away from ownership toward a usage-based mobility model. By aligning software, hardware, and manufacturing capacity, the company is repositioning its vehicles not just as products, but as assets within a service-driven ecosystem.

Cerebras files for IPO after AI chip breakthrough, G42 partnership shapes supply chain

Charlene Chen — Sun, 26 Apr 2026 23:15:13 GMT

Cerebras Systems filed for an initial public offering (IPO) on April 17, 2026, aiming to list on the Nasdaq. The company reversed its fortunes with US$510 million in revenue and a net profit of US$87.9 million in 2025, compared to US$290 million revenue and a net loss of US$484.8 million in 2024.

Meta and Alibaba blur social media and e-commerce boundaries

Kevin Wang — Sun, 26 Apr 2026 23:14:49 GMT

The rise of generative AI has blurred the boundaries between the social media and e-commerce industries, driving a shift in their business models that has been exemplified by recent strategic initiatives from Meta and Alibaba. With competition now expanding horizontally across various sectors, industry observers highlight that Meta's plans to strengthen its physical retail presence may become a key focus for the company. Conversely, it is now increasingly likely that Alibaba will one day venture into social media.

Taiwan's NCSIST partners with Saronic to advance autonomous maritime capabilities

Sherri Wang — Sun, 26 Apr 2026 23:14:25 GMT

Taiwan's National Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology (NCSIST) said on April 24 that it has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Saronic, a US unmanned surface vessel (USV) developer, to develop autonomous maritime systems.

Tata's India chip fab faces leadership churn and engineering hurdles amid uneven but continuing progress

DIGITIMES — Sun, 26 Apr 2026 23:14:01 GMT

Tata Electronics' flagship semiconductor fabrication project in Dholera, Gujarat—long viewed as India's most ambitious attempt to build a domestic chip manufacturing ecosystem—continues to move forward but remains marked by repeated setbacks alongside visible progress. While construction activity and regulatory milestones indicate momentum, leadership exits and complex site conditions underline the challenges of executing a greenfield fab at global scale.

Innolux enters leading tier of advanced packaging with new RDL and TGV technology

Emily Kuo — Sun, 26 Apr 2026 23:13:27 GMT

Innolux is expanding into the advanced semiconductor packaging sector, leveraging display technology as its core platform to accelerate integration with semiconductor and IoT technologies. Building on its strengths in Thin-Film Transistors (TFTs), the company continues to enhance hardware performance while aggressively deploying in Mini LED, Micro LED, and advanced semiconductor packaging. Through technological iteration and capacity optimization, it aims to strengthen its market competitiveness.

BMW's color-changing car is no longer a concept — E Ink says it's ready for mass production

Emily Kuo — Sun, 26 Apr 2026 00:44:25 GMT

E-paper manufacturer E Ink stated that the BMW iX3 Flow Edition equipped with E Ink Prism technology was officially released at the Auto China 2026. This represents a major breakthrough in automotive surface innovation technology. The BMW iX3 Flow Edition has become the world's first vehicle to adopt E Ink Prism electronic paper technology and move toward mass production, marking a new stage in which electronic paper vehicle-body technology has officially transitioned from concept demonstrations to practical applications.

Harman hits KRW15.78 trillion in revenue 10 years after Samsung acquisition

Lily Hess — Sun, 26 Apr 2026 00:41:21 GMT

Samsung Electronics executive chairman Lee Jae-yong's bold acquisition of premium audio brand Harman for KRW9.4 trillion (approx. US$6.3 billion) a decade ago has paid off, with the American subsidiary of Samsung posting historic highs in both revenue and operating profit.

AI data centers hit interconnect limits, boosting optical module demand

DIGITIMES — Sun, 26 Apr 2026 00:41:00 GMT

The surge in optical module stocks reflects a deeper shift in AI infrastructure: the bottleneck is no longer computing power alone, but how that power is connected.

Samsung, Kingston reportedly lift SSD prices by over 10% as supply tightens

DIGITIMES — Sun, 26 Apr 2026 00:40:47 GMT

Samsung Electronics and Kingston Technology have reportedly notified distributors of price increases of more than 10% across their solid-state drive (SSD) product lines, according to IT Home, citing supply chain sources.