Servers built around custom AI chips, known as application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), have emerged as a focal point of the global server supply chain.

Eric Demers, a veteran GPU architect who until recently served as Senior Vice President of Engineering at Qualcomm and led its GPU business, is leaving the company to join Intel, according to a disclosure he made on LinkedIn.

The US and Taiwan have formally concluded a tariff agreement that sets a 15% rate on covered goods, alongside a sweeping package of Taiwanese commitments aimed at deepening ties with the American semiconductor industry. Under the deal, Taiwan will make US$250 billion in direct investment in US semiconductor manufacturing, while its government will provide an additional US$250 billion in credit guarantees.

Taiwanese DDI vendors rode a post-pandemic growth wave, but demand turned increasingly uncertain in 2025. Weak consumer end markets, slowing specification upgrades, and intensifying competition from Chinese rivals have sharply raised pressure on local suppliers.