DIGITIMES: News and Insight of the Global Supply Chain

GM, Ford tap Silicon Valley to reshape software and smart driving

Jingyue Hsiao — Mon, 5 Oct 2026 01:56:18 GMT

General Motors (GM) and Ford Motor are deepening their smart vehicle strategies with support from Silicon Valley technology companies, tapping AI, cloud, and computing capabilities from Google and Nvidia to accelerate vehicle software development, according to DIGITIMES. While the two US automakers are taking different approaches, both are seeking to strengthen their software-defined vehicle (SDV) technology, smart cockpits, and advanced driving capabilities.

Lite-On invests NT$8.85 billion in Kaohsiung expansion; subsidiary Leotek to acquire AmpUp

Eifeh Strom — Mon, 5 Oct 2026 01:48:11 GMT

Lite-On Technology is stepping up its strategic investment in server hardware manufacturing and electric vehicle (EV) charging software integration to support overall revenue growth. On October 2, the company announced that its board approved a capital expenditure plan to expand capacity at its Kaohsiung branch in southern Taiwan. Its wholly owned US subsidiary Leotek Electronics also announced the acquisition of California-based EV charging software provider AmpUp through a reverse triangular merger.

LPDDR5X supply tightens around AI servers, squeezing PCs, smartphones into 2027

Levi Li — Mon, 5 Oct 2026 01:45:22 GMT

AI data center demand for LPDDR5X DRAM has continued to expand through 2026 and is expected to remain strong into 2027, tightening supply for PCs and smartphones and keeping device prices under pressure.

Samsung reportedly seeks more than triple HBM prices for 2027 as HBM4 ramps

Jingyue Hsiao — Mon, 5 Oct 2026 01:38:13 GMT

Samsung Electronics is reportedly seeking 2027 prices for its next-generation high-bandwidth memory (HBM) that are more than three times the price of its current HBM3E product, industry sources said. The increase would come as its main HBM product moves from HBM3E to HBM4. Analysts said the shift should further boost the company's profitability, as it leans on what it calls industry-leading performance.

Samsung reportedly turns to Winbond for TV DRAM as legacy memory supply tightens

Jingyue Hsiao — Mon, 5 Oct 2026 01:36:58 GMT

Samsung Electronics plans to buy DRAM from Taiwan's Winbond Electronics starting in 2027 and is considering using it in about half of its televisions, South Korean publication The Bell reported, citing industry sources. The move comes as major memory makers phase out the LPDDR4 and LPDDR4X chips that TVs still depend on.

Micronex plans Sanand lead-frame plant as India expands chip packaging supply chain

DIGITIMES — Mon, 5 Oct 2026 01:33:21 GMT

Micronex Technology plans to build a semiconductor lead-frame factory in Sanand, Gujarat, seeking to localize a packaging component as India expands its chip assembly and testing industry. The startup's agreement with Kaynes Semicon connects the proposed plant to Gujarat's growing semiconductor ecosystem, while similar supplier partnerships elsewhere point to a wider push for domestic materials and components.

Applied Materials, Besi broaden packaging partnership for AI chip integration

DIGITIMES — Mon, 5 Oct 2026 01:31:08 GMT

Applied Materials and BE Semiconductor Industries (Besi) are expanding their partnership to address the increasingly complex connections between AI chips, extending joint development beyond hybrid bonding into a broader range of packaging technologies. The agreement brings Besi into Applied's Equipment and Process Innovation and Commercialization (EPIC) Center as an Innovation Partner, with the companies seeking to accelerate the transition from research to manufacturing.

Z.ai GLM-5.3 security draws scrutiny as Anthropic flags weak defenses

Jingyue Hsiao — Mon, 5 Oct 2026 01:23:21 GMT

Anthropic has warned that GLM-5.3, the latest model from Chinese AI startup Z.ai, approached Claude Mythos Preview on an exploit-development benchmark but lacks sufficient safety protections, raising concerns that malicious actors could use it for cyberattacks.

South Korea's AI chip budget goes unspent through August

DIGITIMES — Mon, 5 Oct 2026 01:21:06 GMT

South Korea's government is pushing to join the "global top three AI powers," but the AI semiconductor development program led by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources (MOTIR) had spent nothing by the end of August 2026. The core AI semiconductor budget for 2026 totaled KRW166.554 billion (about US$119 million), according to Edaily and Newdaily, yet cumulative execution remained at KRW0.

Weekly news roundup: Musk looms large as AI chip boom drives capacity expansion and geopolitical risks

DIGITIMES — Mon, 5 Oct 2026 01:20:13 GMT

Across the week, Taiwan-linked semiconductor groups and their partners continued expanding capacity, while AI demand, export controls, and financing structures shaped the industry outlook. ASML's push to raise EUV output comes as Musk and Huang warn China may narrow the lithography gap by 2030. TSMC is also tied to Texas, Singapore, and Tesla projects, while ASE added test capacity. Meanwhile, a US smuggling case and Broadcom's Anthropic financing highlight growing geopolitical and financial risk.

Taiwanese aerospace company AIDC unveils Raven X tactical drone

Eifeh Strom — Mon, 5 Oct 2026 01:08:58 GMT

Aerospace Industrial Development (AIDC) unveiled its first self-developed fixed-wing tactical drone, the Raven X. AIDC president Hsiu-mei Chuang recently stated that the Taiwan-based aerospace company is shifting part of its business focus toward unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) development, following the winding down of its Brave Eagle advanced jet trainer production program.

Japan to finalize AI growth investment plan this year

DIGITIMES — Mon, 5 Oct 2026 01:06:11 GMT

Japan plans to detail the first five years of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's more than JPY370 trillion (US$2.3 trillion) 14-year investment initiative, which is designed to spur investment in AI and other strategic sectors, according to documents submitted Thursday, October 1, to Japan's Growth Strategy Council.

SpaceX's Starship reaches orbit, but engine issues raise stakes for NASA's Moon plan

Scarlett Yu — Sun, 4 Oct 2026 23:47:37 GMT

SpaceX's Starship reached Earth orbit for the first time on its 14th test flight and successfully deployed 26 third-generation Starlink satellites, marking a major milestone for the heavy-lift rocket. Engine anomalies during the flight, however, forced SpaceX to cut short a mission originally planned to last about 10 hours, with Starship deorbiting after roughly three hours.

DIGITIMES Insight: AI data demand surges as power and cooling become new bottlenecks

Scarlett Yu — Sun, 4 Oct 2026 23:47:12 GMT

As the number of AI computing transistors integrated within a single CoWoS package rises rapidly, DIGITIMES observes that moving massive volumes of data to compute chips fast enough is becoming increasingly critical to fully utilizing available computing power.

Tesla leads Taiwan registrations as it advances FSD road tests

DIGITIMES — Sun, 4 Oct 2026 23:46:45 GMT

Tesla ranked first in Taiwan's new-car registrations in September and said it is continuing the approval process for its Full Self-Driving (Supervised), or FSD (S), driver-assistance system. The automaker also presented a road-test framework at a technical review meeting as it works with government agencies and academic experts.

Acer tops Canada's Windows PC market in August

DIGITIMES — Sun, 4 Oct 2026 23:46:25 GMT

Acer said it led Canada's Windows personal computer market in August 2026, according to the latest Circana data. The company reported a 22.9% market share in the country and said its sales rose 18.3% from a year earlier, compared with an industrywide decline of 23.2%.

AI system integration eclipses chip specs

Lily Hess — Sun, 4 Oct 2026 23:46:12 GMT

As AI develops rapidly across both cloud and edge environments, major chipmakers are devoting less attention to chip specifications and more to system-level design and ecosystems. For IC design leaders, moving into the system layer has become a key factor for upgrading in the AI era, because simply supplying chips is no longer enough to stay competitive in AI product lines.

Nanya Tech expands 3D OSAT to chase HBM-like demand

Lily Hess — Sun, 4 Oct 2026 23:45:53 GMT

Nanya Technology is stepping up investment in new factory capacity to expand packaging and testing as some customers move into trial production for specification-based designs. The company said it has won approval from the National Science and Technology Council's (NSTC) park review committee to set up a 3D wafer packaging and testing plant in Pingtung Science Park, aiming to capture demand for high-performance, high-bandwidth memory solutions driven by fast-growing AI applications.

US-China truce extension lifts 4Q freight rates, tightens capacity

Yunnie Cheng — Sun, 4 Oct 2026 23:45:18 GMT

After US President Donald Trump met Chinese President Xi Jinping, the two sides agreed to extend their trade truce, a move the market read positively. Industry participants expect previously delayed China-US shipments to be released gradually, pushing freight rates higher from October and tightening cargo space.

Podcast highlights: TSMC Texas plant talk is premature, Intel 18A hits backfiring criticism

Charlene Chen — Sun, 4 Oct 2026 23:44:58 GMT

This excerpt from DIGITIMES analyst Luke Lin's podcast looks at TSMC's rumored Texas expansion, Intel's 14A and 18A process debate, and Qualcomm's high bandwidth compute (HBC) push as AI workloads drive demand for hybrid bonding and advanced packaging.

AI-driven power crunch positions energy upstarts as key IT equipment buyers

Yunnie Cheng — Sun, 4 Oct 2026 23:44:27 GMT

Surging electricity demand driven by artificial intelligence, combined with growing public backlash against data center developments, is elevating energy developers into the new powerbrokers of the AI economy. Beyond maximizing land value through grid access, some energy-rich operators are moving up the technology value chain and could become direct purchasers of IT equipment.

India roundup: India deepens its role in global technology supply chains

DIGITIMES — Sun, 4 Oct 2026 17:33:00 GMT

India is expanding its role across semiconductors, electronics and digital services, as new investment rules, supply-chain localization and Apple initiatives highlight both the country's progress and remaining constraints.

Musk confirms talks with TSMC over his Texas chip factory project

DIGITIMES — Sat, 3 Oct 2026 14:36:49 GMT

Elon Musk has confirmed that Terafab, the chipmaking venture backed by his SpaceX and Tesla, is in discussions with TSMC. The confirmation followed a report that the Taiwanese foundry is looking at running new chip factories in Texas.

Elon Musk, Jensen Huang see China closing lithography gap by 2030

Yunnie Cheng — Sat, 3 Oct 2026 00:31:55 GMT

While ASML executives explore how to scale extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography output beyond 110 units by 2028, China is pursuing indigenous advanced lithography systems. ASML plans to produce at least 80 EUV tools in 2027 and is investigating a further capacity increase of approximately 30% in 2028 to satisfy massive global capital expenditure in artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure. However, the prospect of domestic Chinese tools raises long-term uncertainty over the lithography landscape.

Synopsys reshapes EDA, IP business models as AI shifts revenue from seats to customer output

Scarlett Yu — Sat, 3 Oct 2026 00:31:41 GMT

Synopsys is reshaping how it monetizes its two core businesses, electronic design automation (EDA) and semiconductor IP, as AI transforms engineering workflows. Announcements at the company's 2026 Investor Day in New York, including new partnerships with OpenAI and Amazon, point to revenue models increasingly tied to customer consumption, design outcomes, and eventual chip shipments rather than primarily to engineer seats or upfront licensing.

Interview: AI PCs reach 65% of Europe's notebook channel, but what brings buyers to the market?

DIGITIMES — Sat, 3 Oct 2026 00:31:14 GMT

The rapid iteration of AI-capable hardware, following an industry-wide push toward integrating AI-processing capabilities into PCs, is bringing renewed attention to what AI could offer as its presence extends further into the notebook market. But beneath the expanding promise of these machines lies a less straightforward question: what is actually compelling buyers to bring them into their businesses and homes?

Biren readies BR20X, sharpening China's AI GPU challenge to Nvidia

DIGITIMES — Sat, 3 Oct 2026 00:31:01 GMT

Biren Technology is preparing its next-generation GPU for mass production, advancing a domestic AI accelerator roadmap built around broader low-precision support and locally available manufacturing.

Global annual AI server shipments, 2025-2026

DIGITIMES — Fri, 2 Oct 2026 10:10:30 GMT

Continued advances in top-tier LLM capabilities, coupled with the potential for business automation enabled by agentic AI, are prompting major North American cloud providers, Neo Clouds, and leading AI labs to accelerate AI data center buildouts in 2026.

Anthropic aims for mid-November IPO as it juggles relationship with Trump administration

DIGITIMES — Fri, 2 Oct 2026 10:01:12 GMT

Anthropic is reportedly eyeing an IPO as early as mid-November that could become the biggest IPO to date. The AI startup's run-up to the listing coincides with a shaky relationship with the US government, calls from its CEO Dario Amodei for more industry regulations, and nationwide public concerns about AI safety.

Samsung's Galaxy Tab S12 taps MediaTek Dimensity 9500 as 2nm successor arrives

DIGITIMES — Fri, 2 Oct 2026 09:58:27 GMT

MediaTek announced on September 30 that its flagship Dimensity 9500 chip powers Samsung's new Galaxy Tab S12 Ultra and Galaxy Tab S12+ tablets. The deal continues a long-running partnership between the two companies across Samsung's Galaxy Tab line.

LG Energy Solution and GM bet LMR can bridge the gap between LFP cost and high-nickel range

DIGITIMES — Fri, 2 Oct 2026 09:35:00 GMT

For years, automakers have grappled with an underlying paradox stemming from persistent EV raw-material pressures, as supply chains worldwide have been constrained by a familiar battery-chemistry trade-off: cost-effectiveness versus high-performance density.

Bull's France factory doubles capacity to capture growing orders as EU pushes AI sovereignty

DIGITIMES — Fri, 2 Oct 2026 09:03:45 GMT

Supercomputer maker Bull will double its production capacity using an expanded factory that reopened on October 1. The French creator of Europe's fastest supercomputers described unprecedented orders as the continent seeks to catch up to the US and China in AI infrastructure.

Climax Technology stays cautious on 2H26 as memory costs rise

Yunnie Cheng — Fri, 2 Oct 2026 09:01:24 GMT

Climax Technology said elevated memory prices are pressuring its gross margin in the second half of 2026, while longer customer validation cycles for substitute memory parts are also dampening its outlook. The wireless communications company said its overall second-half outlook remains conservative.

Meta to add Naver Map navigation to AI glasses in South Korea

DIGITIMES — Fri, 2 Oct 2026 08:54:10 GMT

Meta will link Naver Map's walking-navigation feature to its Ray-Ban Meta and Oakley Meta AI glasses in 2026, as it moves to strengthen its presence in South Korea before rival AI glasses from Google and Samsung Electronics arrive. According to South Korean media outlets Seoul Economic Daily and ETNews, the deal would make Naver the first South Korean company to partner with Meta in the AI glasses category.

iPhone 18 Pro lifts Apple to 33% China share

DIGITIMES — Fri, 2 Oct 2026 08:48:45 GMT

Apple's iPhone 18 Pro series lifted first-week sales in China by 12% year over year, giving the soft smartphone market a much-needed boost and pushing Apple to the top of weekly sales with a 33% market share. The strong start underscores the brand loyalty that premium customers continue to show toward Apple's flagship phones, even amid market volatility.