United Microelectronics Corporation (UMC) announced on December 17 that it will participate in the capital increase of its affiliate, IC substrate manufacturer Unimicron Technology, as part of a strategic investment plan.
Tokyo Ohka Kogyo plans to accelerate investment in South Korea and expand production of materials critical to generative AI semiconductors, positioning itself to meet rising demand for advanced lithography and packaging technologies.
SenseTime has released Seko 2.0, which it describes as the industry's first multi-episode video generation agent, marking a step beyond short AI clips toward longer, more coherent video content.
Global growth is poised to lose momentum. IMF forecasts show global GDP easing from 3.3% in 2024 to 3.2% in 2025 and 3.1% in 2026. China's growth is expected to slow from 5% to 4.8% and then to 4.2%, while India may dip from 6.6% to 6.2%. Taiwan remains an outlier, supported by strong AI and semiconductor investment and exports, with GDP projected at 7.37% in 2025. Continued strength in AI server exports could also lift its 2026 forecast of 3.54%.
Samsung Electronics is positioning a proprietary thermal management technology for external clients as it seeks to reclaim foundry market share from TSMC. The South Korean company plans to offer its Heat Path Block solution to third-party chip designers after validating the system in its upcoming Exynos 2600 processor, according to local media reports.
