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Tuesday 5 May 2026

Intel's revival runs on politics and promises — but supply bottlenecks tell a different story

Intel's share price has hit historic highs as the semiconductor industry draws significant investor attention. But is this hype justified? DIGITIMES analyst Luke Lin took a deep dive into the fundamental facts, production bottlenecks, and competitive gaps behind Intel's surge during a recent podcast.

Tuesday 5 May 2026

Samsung reportedly eyes SiC foundry reboot, targets 2028 mass production

Samsung Electronics is reportedly restarting its silicon carbide (SiC) wafer foundry business, aiming to tap into the fast-growing next-generation power semiconductor market, reinforce its market position, and improve utilization rates at its existing 8-inch foundry lines. Industry estimates suggest Samsung could enter mass production of SiC chips by 2028.

Tuesday 5 May 2026

Analysis: CoWoS crunch and MediaTek's hire raise a bigger question — can Intel deliver?

The AI chip race is increasingly running into a different kind of limit — not compute, but packaging, as supply constraints around advanced technologies such as CoWoS begin to tighten.

Tuesday 5 May 2026

Kioxia, SanDisk to unveil 3D flash architecture targeting 1,000-layer milestone

Kioxia and SanDisk are set to present a new 3D flash memory architecture aimed at extending NAND scaling beyond 1,000 stacked layers, as memory makers seek ways to overcome the physical and electrical limits of conventional layer increases.

Monday 4 May 2026

Win Semiconductors: GaAs and InP supply still meets production demand

Rising raw material prices have pushed up gallium arsenide (GaAs) substrate costs, squeezing a key material used in power amplifiers (PA). Win Semiconductors said that its scale gives it stronger bargaining power, but the company will renegotiate prices with customers if input costs swing sharply.

Monday 4 May 2026

DIGITIMES Chair: South Korea's 260,000 GPU plan relies heavily on Taiwanese production, highlights need for collaboration in AI era

As global demand for AI infrastructure accelerates, the collaboration between Taiwan and South Korea—the core pillars of the global semiconductor supply chain—is critical to winning the new tech race. Colley Hwang, chairman of DIGITIMES and IC Broadcasting, said South Korea's plan to deploy 260,000 Nvidia GPUs remains heavily reliant on Taiwan's manufacturing capabilities.

Monday 4 May 2026

Weekly News Roundup: Terafab already affecting wafer fab landscape; Intel launches multi-year reset

Below are the most-read DIGITIMES Asia stories from the week of April 27-May 4, 2026:

Monday 4 May 2026

Samsung foundry rebound gains steam as 4nm yield reportedly tops 80%

Samsung Electronics' foundry business is drawing renewed attention as its 4nm process reportedly reaches higher utilization, supported by HBM4 base-die demand and orders from global technology companies.

Monday 4 May 2026

Commentary: Intel names TSMC as key partner; insider drives its comeback

One year into his tenure, Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan struck a markedly different tone on the company's outlook. At the first-quarter 2026 earnings call, he said the debate a year ago centred on whether Intel could survive. Today, the focus has shifted to how quickly it can expand capacity and scale its supply chain to meet surging demand.

Monday 4 May 2026

Taiwan moves to close the gap on semiconductor equipment self-sufficiency

Taiwan's government is advancing its Five Trusted Industry Sectors program, which identifies semiconductors, AI, defense, security, and next-generation communications as the country's core growth drivers. The push for self-sufficiency in semiconductor materials and equipment has already generated NT$22 billion (US$696.92 million) in new output in 2025, with some of the machinery reportedly shipped to China.

Monday 4 May 2026

TSMC’s 3nm crunch will keep Apple Mac supply constrained until 2nm ramps up

Supply-chain participants said Apple's fiscal second-quarter 2026 performance should be read less as a demand story and more as a reflection of persistent constraints in advanced semiconductor capacity, particularly at leading-edge process nodes.

Monday 4 May 2026

United Integrated Services targets NT$100 billion revenue in 2026 as TSMC and Micron drive fab demand

United Integrated Services reported a record net profit of NT$9.069 billion (US$287 million) for 2025 and posted NT$20.288 billion in revenue in the first quarter of 2026, increases of 46.5% year-on-year and 76.15% year-on-year, respectively, the firm announced. The engineering and cleanroom contractor said it holds nearly NT$150 billion in orders and aims to reach NT$100 billion in annual revenue in 2026, while comfortably exceeding NT$10 billion in after-tax net profit, positioning itself as a leading profitable player in factory engineering services.

Monday 4 May 2026

SEMICON SEA 2026 highlights Malaysia's push to scale semiconductor assembly, testing and packaging

SEMICON SEA 2026 convened from May 5 to 7 at the Malaysia International Trade and Exhibition Center in Kuala Lumpur to showcase Malaysia's expanding role in the global semiconductor supply chain amid surging demand for artificial intelligence and high-performance computing. Organizers presented the event under the theme "Transform Tomorrow" and framed the conference as a platform for industry decision-makers, multinational firms, and innovators to explore capacity, talent, and sustainability challenges.

Monday 4 May 2026

Croma ATE posts record 1Q26 revenue and profit as AI server demand lifts SLT and photonics orders

Croma ATE reported record first-quarter 2026 revenue and profits after customers booked full-year capacity, driven by soaring demand for AI server power supplies, the company announced. The electronic measurement and testing equipment maker said the strength in orders came despite the typical seasonal slowdown and that growth was expected to continue in the coming quarters.

Monday 4 May 2026

SPIL buys multiple Nanke plants to boost advanced packaging capacity for AI demand

Siliconware Precision Industries Co., Ltd. (SPIL), a subsidiary of ASE Technology Holding, acquired two Nanke-area plants in 2026 from HannStar Display and its affiliate HannsTouch Technology as part of a broader push to expand advanced packaging capacity for artificial intelligence workloads.

Monday 4 May 2026

BenQ Materials unit Cenefom enters memory supply chain with CMP brush wheels

BenQ Materials is accelerating its expansion into semiconductor materials as its subsidiary Cenefom officially begins operations at its new Guangyuan plant. The facility's chemical mechanical planarization (CMP) brush wheels have entered the Taiwan supply chain of a major memory manufacturer.

Monday 4 May 2026

ESMC confirmed to be on schedule — and sets its sights on AI

The European Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (ESMC), a joint venture among TSMC, Bosch, Infineon Technologies, and NXP Semiconductors, is set to begin initial production in 2027. On April 29, the German Trade Office Taipei confirmed that construction is progressing as scheduled and expressed confidence in the timely delivery of the first batch of chips.

Monday 4 May 2026

Holtek raises low-margin MCU prices, expands AI server cooling and optical comms

Microcontroller (MCU) maker Holtek announced it has raised prices on low-margin MCUs following wafer foundry and packaging cost hikes in China at the end of 2025. This price adjustment has since driven order inflows for touch MCUs and other products. Holtek expects strong growth momentum in the security and health segments in the first half of 2026, with some orders already visible up to six months ahead. The company is also advancing the development of brushless DC motor (BLDC) products and external laser optical communication modules targeting AI servers.

Monday 4 May 2026

India roundup: India accelerates AI, semiconductor, and manufacturing push with major investments and startup bets

India's technology ecosystem is seeing rapid expansion across AI infrastructure, semiconductors, and electronics manufacturing. From startup bets on AI inference to multi-billion-dollar data center plans and OSAT capacity buildouts, global and domestic players are deepening commitments. The momentum underscores India's rising role in supply chains and compute-driven industries.

Monday 4 May 2026

AI data center demand boosts IDM growth in industrial market

Recovery in the industrial chip market, driven by AI data center demand, is poised to reshape manufacturers and supply chains worldwide, as Texas Instruments and NXP Semiconductors report stronger performance in their industrial segments. Improved demand visibility and projected growth through 2026 could influence component sourcing, pricing, and investment strategies for technology stakeholders.

Sunday 3 May 2026

CSP capex push toward US$700B as AI race intensifies, but ASIC demand timing remains uncertain

At their latest earnings calls, all four major US cloud service providers (CSPs) offered updated views on their 2026 capital expenditure (capex) plans. While Amazon's AWS maintained its already elevated capex levels, the other three — Alphabet, Microsoft, and Meta — each raised their spending outlooks.

Sunday 3 May 2026

Taiwan quartz makers target LEO satellite boom by 2027

As wireless communication applications surge, demand for quartz components and filters is rising in tandem, with manufacturers actively expanding into the low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite sector. An industry insider says ground receiving stations currently drive the strongest demand for filters and quartz parts, forecasting a market explosion by 2027 as satellite communication users grow.

Saturday 2 May 2026

MediaTek taps retiring TSMC packaging veteran to strengthen foundry ties, not to bridge to Intel

Chen-Hua Douglas Yu, one of the six R&D leaders known inside TSMC as the "six knights," and a central figure in the foundry's advanced packaging development, has joined MediaTek following his 2025 retirement from TSMC. MediaTek confirmed the move, saying it is "honored to have Mr. Yu serve as an informal adviser."

Saturday 2 May 2026

Onsemi expands collaboration with NIO to support 900V EV platforms

Onsemi's expanded collaboration with NIO to support the automaker's move to 900V electric vehicle platforms could accelerate global EV adoption by improving range, charging speed, and drivetrain efficiency, influencing vehicle performance and manufacturing scalability for new models introduced worldwide, including those scheduled to debut at the 2026 Beijing Auto Show.

Friday 1 May 2026

TeraFab is already changing the semiconductor landscape — before a single chip is made

Elon Musk has a habit of building what he cannot buy.

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