DIGITIMES: News and Insight of the Global Supply Chain

Trump-Xi summit leaves rare-earth issue unresolved amid yttrium supply squeeze

DIGITIMES — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 05:18:55 GMT

The Trump-Xi summit left rare-earth supplies among the unresolved issues in US-China economic relations, as the US and Japan confront uneven access to yttrium, a little-known rare-earth metal used in heat-resistant coatings for semiconductor manufacturing tools.

Trump-Xi state dinner draws tech titans but no Chinese CEOs

DIGITIMES — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 02:53:32 GMT

The White House state dinner for Chinese President Xi Jinping on September 24 brought together many of the biggest names in US technology, while no Chinese business executives appeared on the final guest list, ending weeks of uncertainty over plans for a Chinese corporate delegation.

Trump, Xi back AI talks as hotline details remain unclear

DIGITIMES — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 02:50:22 GMT

The US and China have brought artificial intelligence into their bilateral economic dialogue and received leader-level backing to continue talks. Still, details of an AI safety hotline described by US officials remain unclear after US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping met in Washington.

Samsung, SK Hynix in the running for PS6 GDDR7 orders

DIGITIMES — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 01:02:41 GMT

Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix are reportedly in the running to supply 24Gb GDDR7 memory for Sony's next-generation PlayStation, as tight memory supply complicates planning for the Japanese company's next hardware platform.

BOE supplies panel for LG's 5K Mini LED gaming monitor

DIGITIMES — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 00:58:21 GMT

China's BOE is supplying the panel for LG Electronics' 27-inch UltraGear evo 27GM950B, putting the display maker's technology in one of LG's premium gaming monitors as BOE expands its push into higher-resolution and ultra-high-refresh-rate displays.

China's autonomous-driving suppliers confront the limits of software moats

Levi Li — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 00:58:10 GMT

Chinese autonomous-driving software specialist Momenta posted a strong first-half performance, with gross margin reaching 73.2% and adjusted net loss narrowing by about 97%. Yet despite the sharp financial improvement, doubts remain over its longer-term prospects. Supply-chain sources say that as intelligent-driving technology matures, strong software algorithms alone may no longer be enough to build a durable competitive moat.

CPC, Taipower pay premiums to secure energy supplies, face financial strain

Eifeh Strom — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 00:57:50 GMT

The ongoing conflict in the Middle East, along with continued tensions between the US and Iran, has kept international energy prices elevated, while shipping volumes through the two major straits have fallen sharply. Against that backdrop, CPC Corporation, Taiwan (CPC), and Taiwan Power Company (Taipower) are shouldering the burden of "containing inflation" by stabilizing domestic prices and easing the burden on consumers, while also absorbing high fuel costs and dealing with increasing financial pressure.

Taiwan keeps door open for Chinese parts in drones

Sherri Wang — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 00:57:31 GMT

Taiwan is leaving room for Chinese-made components in parts of its commercial drone supply chain, with non-critical items such as passive components, magnets, and optical lenses not required to be sourced entirely outside China even as the government pushes for non-China sourcing of critical technologies.

Bright LED Electronics rides PCBA rebound to double-digit growth

Charlene Chen — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 00:54:58 GMT

Bright LED Electronics said its core profit rebounded in the first half of 2026, helped by recovering printed circuit board assembly (PCBA) demand and a better product mix. The LED packaging maker expects second-half performance to be roughly in line with the first half, while seeing growth momentum extend into 2027.

Interview: Intel director talks physical AI, business models, and robotics' future

DIGITIMES — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 00:54:45 GMT

Physical AI is accelerating like never before. Autonomous intelligent machines can walk, run, fly, swim, and assemble car parts in under a minute. New advances in AI models and technologies like dexterous hands are also pushing the boundaries of how smart and useful humanoids can be.

Interview: GMI Cloud bets on Taiwan as a proving ground for global AI expansion

DIGITIMES — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 00:54:34 GMT

GMI Cloud is making Taiwan a key part of its global AI infrastructure expansion, with a US$500 million investment in an AI factory powered by Nvidia's Blackwell GPUs. Announced in late 2025, the facility is expected to deploy roughly 7,000 GPUs and serve customers including Trend Micro and Wistron.

From ISM 1.0 to Semicon 2.0—India's chip subsidy overhaul draws early interest, raises the bar for investors

DIGITIMES — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 00:54:24 GMT

India's new semiconductor incentive regime is putting more capital at risk for manufacturers, but the first wave of investment commitments suggests lower subsidies have not stopped companies from considering fresh projects.

Rockets are booked until 2029, and suppliers won't expand without firm orders

DIGITIMES — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 00:53:03 GMT

A new customer booking Ariane 6 today would find the earliest opening in 2029. The space industry is not short of demand; it is short of people willing to build the factory before the orders are certain.

Microsoft to invest US$10B in Middle East AI infrastructure, despite war risks

DIGITIMES — Thu, 24 Sep 2026 10:38:39 GMT

Microsoft announced that it will invest US$10 billion in expanding AI infrastructure in the Middle East by 2030. The commitment directs funding to a region facing threats from the war in Iran, where data center construction has continued despite the ongoing conflict.

Anduril's Taiwan supply chain to grow 15-fold in 2026

Lily Hess — Thu, 24 Sep 2026 10:05:32 GMT

US defense tech unicorn Anduril plans to expand its overall investment in Taiwan, with procurement from its Taiwan supply chain expected to grow 15-fold in 2026, founder Palmer Luckey said at the International Forum of the Whole-of-Society Defense Resilience Committee.

Taiwan's homegrown trainer program ends with 66 Brave Eagles delivered

Charlene Chen — Thu, 24 Sep 2026 09:28:16 GMT

AIDC's Brave Eagle advanced jet trainer, a flagship "made-in-Taiwan" defense program, completed development and mass production on September 24, with AIDC chairman Chin-Pin Tsao personally leading the final delivery. The handover means all 66 production aircraft have now been delivered, marking a new chapter for Taiwan's defense aviation supply chain.

Honda eyes Ohio hybrid plant amid pivot to North America

DIGITIMES — Thu, 24 Sep 2026 08:55:00 GMT

Honda Motor Co. is planning to invest JPY300 billion to JPY400 billion (about US$1.9 billion to US$2.5 billion) in a new hybrid electric vehicle plant in Ohio, with production targeted to begin as early as 2030. According to Nikkei, the project has entered final negotiations as Honda moves hybrids to the center of its North American rebound after reviewing its electric vehicle strategy.

Grab turns Taiwan into a launchpad for Southeast Asia expansion

DIGITIMES — Thu, 24 Sep 2026 08:51:03 GMT

Grab is expanding the scope of its Taiwan strategy beyond food delivery, launching an overseas expansion programme for merchants aimed at helping Taiwanese food and beverage (F&B) brands enter Southeast Asian markets.

ASRock Industrial revenue jumps 95% in 1H26 on North America deal

Charlene Chen — Thu, 24 Sep 2026 08:11:51 GMT

ASRock Industrial, the industrial PC (IPC) arm of ASRock, posted a 95.4% year-over-year surge in first-half 2026 revenue after winning a major North American streaming services contract. The company is also expanding into robotics, entertainment, cybersecurity and edge computing as the IPC sector rebounds and shifts toward new applications.

CXMT gains ground in DRAM as Samsung, SK Hynix shift more capacity to HBM

DIGITIMES — Thu, 24 Sep 2026 07:55:00 GMT

China's ChangXin Memory Technologies (CXMT) is gaining ground in the global DRAM market as Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix allocate more production capacity to high-bandwidth memory (HBM), tightening conventional memory supply and giving the Chinese supplier more room to expand without competing primarily on price.

LG sharpens focus on data centers, robotics, chip materials

DIGITIMES — Thu, 24 Sep 2026 07:43:03 GMT

LG Group is sharpening its focus on data centers, robotics, semiconductor materials, and enterprise AI as the South Korean conglomerate refines how it allocates capital across businesses moving toward commercialization at different speeds.

AI drives Episil GeSi, PMIC growth

Lily Hess — Thu, 24 Sep 2026 07:14:47 GMT

Semiconductor epitaxy maker Episil Precision said on September 22 that rising demand from AI data centers has created two main growth engines. Demand for silicon photonics optical communication modules is driving a surge in germanium silicon (GeSi) epitaxy demand, with the sector projected to grow 3.5- to 4-fold in 2027 and demand visibility extending to 2028.

China AI's new moat: low-cost models meet a rapidly localising hardware stack

Levi Li — Thu, 24 Sep 2026 07:11:59 GMT

China's AI industry is moving beyond policy-driven technological catch-up into a new phase centered on commercialization and ecosystem competition. Localization is no longer confined to replacing individual components; it is evolving towards full-stack, system-level optimization.

Peking University Dean's rare Intel China appearance hails AI-plus edge adoption

Charlene Chen — Thu, 24 Sep 2026 06:57:33 GMT

Chinese macroeconomist Justin Lin, dean of Peking University's Institute of New Structural Economics, made a rare appearance at a tech industry event on September 22, speaking at the 2026 Intel Technology Innovation and Industry Ecosystem Conference about the AI revolution from an economic development perspective. Intel China used the event to showcase AI applications spanning edge AI, enterprise AI, and physical AI, underscoring its push to accelerate AI deployment in China.

Yusin Malaysia plant to fully ramp up by 4Q26

DIGITIMES — Thu, 24 Sep 2026 06:50:30 GMT

Brake system parts maker Yusin said at an investor conference on September 23 that key equipment at its new Malaysia plant is expected to be installed by the fourth quarter of 2026, with production targeted at 557,500 sets in 2027. Chairman Ching-te Chi said the company was hit by the restructuring of its largest customer, First Brands Group (FBG), which pushed Yusin into a loss in 2025 and sharply cut first-half 2026 revenue, but July and August sales have returned to year-over-year growth, suggesting early signs of a rebound.

United Renewable Energy eyes US plant, space-based solar power in revenue push

Kevin Wang — Thu, 24 Sep 2026 06:38:18 GMT

Solar cell manufacturer and systems integrator United Renewable Energy (URE) is still awaiting a final decision on the location of its US solar module plant, a joint venture with Sino-American Silicon Products (SAS), although production has now been set to begin in the third quarter of 2027. The upcoming US plant is expected to lift overseas revenue in its solar power business, which accounts for 70% of the company's total revenue; overseas sales currently account for roughly 20% of revenue in this segment and could double in 2027 amid strong demand. Moreover, the company is actively developing and testing solar power products for use in low Earth orbit (LEO) satellites with an eye on future growth, according to company chairman Sam Hong.

Chinese foundry CanSemi seeks US$918M ChiNext listing

DIGITIMES — Thu, 24 Sep 2026 06:38:02 GMT

Guangzhou-based wafer foundry CanSemi Technology has set its initial public offering (IPO) price at CNY12.01 per share on Shenzhen's ChiNext board. The company aims to raise CNY6.16 billion (approx. US$917.9 million) by issuing 512.6 million new shares.

Cadence, Synopsys certify TSMC A14 design flows ahead of 2028 production

DIGITIMES — Thu, 24 Sep 2026 06:26:00 GMT

Cadence Design Systems and Synopsys have achieved certification for key design flows on TSMC's A14 process, expanding the design ecosystem for the foundry's next full node ahead of risk production in 2027 and volume production in 2028.

Alibaba Cloud accelerates AI infrastructure buildout with 20GW target, eight-market expansion

Levi Li — Thu, 24 Sep 2026 06:14:43 GMT

AI adoption is accelerating, prompting global cloud providers to step up data center investment. Alibaba Cloud, the cloud computing arm of Alibaba, announced a new round of global infrastructure expansion at the 2026 Apsara Conference, with plans to broaden its data center footprint across eight countries and regions over the next 12 months.

Nscale's biggest customer: a Singapore unit with US$1,000 in capital, owned by ByteDance's AI brand holder

DIGITIMES — Thu, 24 Sep 2026 05:56:30 GMT

Nscale, the UK AI cloud company preparing a US listing at a reported US$35 billion valuation, got nearly three-quarters of its 2025 sales from a Singapore company. Singapore and US records reviewed by DIGITIMES show that company's parent owns the trademarks for ByteDance's AI models and products outside China.

Meta stretches its glasses lineup from US$249 to US$1,299.99 as rivals close in

DIGITIMES — Thu, 24 Sep 2026 05:56:00 GMT

Meta Platforms used its Connect 2026 conference on September 23 to push its eyewear lineup toward both ends of the market, adding a camera-free audio model aimed at privacy-conscious buyers and a US$1,299.99 virtual reality (VR) device that fits headset-class hardware into a frame of about 100 grams. The range now runs from a US$249 Meta Adventurer to the new Meta VR Glasses, and the expansion comes as Samsung and Google prepare to launch their own glasses later this fall.

ASML system sales in Europe remain at zero as EU debates Chips Act 2.0

DIGITIMES — Thu, 24 Sep 2026 05:43:45 GMT

European Union industry ministers are set to debate the proposed Chips Act 2.0 in Brussels on September 24, days after a senior ASML executive said the company is currently selling no chipmaking systems in Europe, highlighting the gap between the bloc's semiconductor ambitions and where industry investment is flowing. The policy debate is scheduled for about 11:30 a.m. Brussels time at the EU Competitiveness Council.

South Korea chip, panel lines stay on as AI, iPhone demand surges

DIGITIMES — Thu, 24 Sep 2026 05:41:34 GMT

South Korea's major semiconductor, display, and electronics parts factories are staying open through the Chuseok holiday as AI-driven memory demand and new Apple iPhone panel production keep lines running. Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix are continuing output at key plants, while display and MLCC makers are also maintaining round-the-clock operations.

Beijing Eswin heads for HK IPO as RISC-V growth shifts to autos, industrial chips

DIGITIMES — Thu, 24 Sep 2026 04:55:00 GMT

Beijing Eswin Computing Technology has cleared its Hong Kong Stock Exchange listing hearing, moving closer to becoming the market's first listed RISC-V-focused chip company.

Qualcomm sticks with TSMC for both 2nm Snapdragon flagships as Samsung steps up foundry push

DIGITIMES — Thu, 24 Sep 2026 04:52:55 GMT

Qualcomm is sticking with TSMC for both of its newly launched 2nm Snapdragon flagship processors, extending the Taiwan foundry's hold on Qualcomm's top-tier mobile chips even as Samsung Electronics ramps its second-generation 2nm process and steps up efforts to win advanced-node customers.