China is accelerating its push into fourth-generation semiconductors, with the country's first fully integrated industrial project for ultra-wide-bandgap semiconductor materials set to be built in Zhengzhou. The project aims to strengthen domestic capabilities in diamond-based semiconductor materials for AI chips, advanced communications and electric vehicles, while expanding China's presence beyond silicon carbide (SiC) and gallium nitride (GaN).
South Korea is pushing to establish a second national semiconductor production base in its southwestern Honam region, with Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix planning to each build two new large-scale chip fabrication sites as part of a KRW800 trillion (approx. US$517.87 billion) national chip ecosystem project, according to Chosun.
With growing demand for AI server cooling and power management solutions, power semiconductor design company Potens reported that revenue from its server-related business has risen from 4.5% of total revenue in 2025 to 13.5%, a significant jump that reflects strong momentum in the segment. The company also remains optimistic about continued expansion in the AI, automotive, and motor control markets. Order transfers from Western manufacturers seeking to reduce reliance on China are also materializing.
Taiwan's Hsinchu Science Park is still attracting semiconductor service companies even as major foundries run short of land, underscoring the park's role in a global supply chain centered on advanced chips. New approvals for testing, materials, and equipment research point to rising demand for services that support production at below 2nm nodes.
China's AI chip race is pushing the semiconductor bottleneck into advanced packaging and testing, where HPC, HBM, Chiplets and domestic substitution are driving a new capacity cycle.
Hanmi Semiconductor has launched FC Bonder 3.5, a new flip-chip bonding tool for AI system semiconductor packaging, as the South Korean equipment maker looks to broaden its advanced packaging business beyond TC bonders for high-bandwidth memory and supply global foundry and OSAT customers, ETNews and Yonhap reported.
South Korea's plan to push semiconductor investment beyond the greater Seoul area is taking clearer shape, with Samsung Electronics reportedly moving closer to a new chip hub in Gwangju while SK Hynix continues to weigh a site in South Jeolla Province against overseas investment options.
