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Tuesday 9 December 2025
UMC licenses Imec SiPh tech, plans risk production in 2026-27
UMC announced on December 8, 2025, that it has signed a technology licensing agreement with Belgium-based Imec to acquire the Imec iSiPP300 silicon photonics (SiPh) process. This process supports co-packaged optics (CPO) compatibility, enabling UMC to launch a 12-inch SiPh platform targeting next-generation high-speed connectivity applications.
Tuesday 9 December 2025
Samsung moves up Pyeongtaek Phase 4 timeline in aggressive HBM4 push
Samsung Electronics, fresh off completing sixth-generation HBM4 development, is reportedly accelerating DRAM capacity expansion in a renewed effort to reclaim leadership in AI memory.
Tuesday 9 December 2025
Topco Scientific to showcase key semiconductor materials and equipment at SEMICON Japan
The SEMICON Japan 2025 exhibition is set to take place in Tokyo from December 17 to 19, 2025, with Topco Scientific (TSC) and its Japanese subsidiary Shunkawa participating alongside nine semiconductor suppliers from Taiwan, the US, and Japan. Together, they will showcase critical materials and equipment covering semiconductor front-end processing, power modules, and advanced packaging, as well as integrated solutions for smart energy-saving monitoring systems.
Tuesday 9 December 2025
Japan's Cica-Huntek joins TSMC supply chain
Cica-Huntek Chemical Technology, a joint venture between Japan's Kanto Chemical and Huntek Systems, has entered the TSMC supply chain. The company has benefited from Kanto Chemical's long-standing cooperation with TSMC and its deep expertise in chemical supply systems, securing orders for TSMC's AP8 fab and its Kumamoto facility in Japan.
Tuesday 9 December 2025
Commentary: Are East Asia tensions a threat to supply chains?
The Indo-Pacific region has become the world's most critical theater for both technology manufacturing and geopolitical competition. As military tensions escalate across East Asia, executives are increasingly questioning whether their supply chains can withstand potential disruptions.
Tuesday 9 December 2025
Samsung's HBM4 edge fuels foundry recovery
Samsung Electronics, with its sixth-generation high-bandwidth memory (HBM4), uses base dies produced by Samsung Foundry. As Samsung's HBM4 competitiveness rises, the market expects the performance of Samsung Foundry to improve in tandem. Increased HBM4 sales not only boost the memory business but also drive foundry revenue, demonstrating Samsung's advantage as an integrated device manufacturer (IDM).
Tuesday 9 December 2025
Navitas, Cyient Semiconductors partner to develop GaN ecosystem in India
Navitas Semiconductor and Cyient Semiconductors have announced a strategic, long-term partnership aimed at advancing gallium nitride (GaN) technology adoption in India and establishing a comprehensive local GaN ecosystem. The collaboration, announced on December 8, 2025, will focus on product co-development, local supply chain development, and enabling high-power applications.
Tuesday 9 December 2025
SK Hynix secures 39 patents in China to strengthen memory and neuromorphic chip design
SK Hynix and battery subsidiaries within SK Group received approval for 68 core patents in China in November 2025. Many of these patents relate to highly integrated memory designs and solid-state battery stability technologies, which are expected to accelerate the development of next-generation AI chips and electric vehicle batteries, enhancing competitiveness in the Chinese market.
Tuesday 9 December 2025
Silver shockwaves push tech suppliers to renegotiate and retrench

Since the start of 2025, silver prices have nearly doubled, far outpacing the roughly 30% rise in copper and the 60% climb in gold. The metal's extraordinary rally has prompted traders to dub it "the new gold" of the precious-metals market. Analysts now expect the momentum to continue into 2026, driven by heightened global risk aversion and tightening regional supplies.

Tuesday 9 December 2025
Tata Group and Intel form strategic alliance to assemble chips in India
Tata Group and Intel announced on December 8 that they have signed a memorandum of understanding to explore cooperation across semiconductor manufacturing, packaging and AI-focused computing systems in India. The agreement is aimed at expanding domestic chip production and building a more resilient electronics supply chain as India seeks to strengthen its position in the global semiconductor industry.
Tuesday 9 December 2025
Baidu evaluates Kunlun chip spin-off for Hong Kong IPO, but offers no guarantee
Baidu has responded to reports that its in-house chip business, Kunlunxin, is planning a separate listing on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange by stating it is currently evaluating the possibility, but does not guarantee the move will proceed.
Tuesday 9 December 2025
Moore Threads CEO leverages Nvidia legacy to challenge GPU giant
In a global GPU market dominated by US-based Nvidia, Chinese startup Moore Threads is rapidly emerging as a formidable local challenger. The driving force behind this bold counterattack is founder and CEO Jianzhong Zhang, whose 14-year career at Nvidia adds another dimension to the company's strategy.
Tuesday 9 December 2025
Samsung moves to narrow gap with TSMC as silicon photonics race heats up
Samsung Electronics is accelerating development of silicon photonics (SiPh) technology in an effort to solve bottlenecks in advanced AI processors and narrow the competitive gap with TSMC. The company is expanding its global research network and targeting the commercialization of co-packaged optics in 2027. Industry sources say that the timeline will mark the beginning of direct competition with its Taiwanese rival in next-generation packaging.
Tuesday 9 December 2025
Analysis: Why isn't Huawei trying to win the tech war?
Huawei founder Ren Zhengfei recently gave a public talk at the Huawei Lianqiuhu R&D Center in Shanghai. He shared insights on AI, quantum computing, computing power, and chips. He also answered questions from domestic and foreign researchers about the US-China tech competition.
Monday 8 December 2025
Exclusive: Ex-TSMC R&D VP talks advanced packaging and CoWoS
Former TSMC R&D vice president Douglas Yu shared insights on the evolution of advanced packaging technologies like CoWoS, InFO, and SoIC, highlighting their critical role in extending Moore's Law amid its slowdown. He emphasized how these innovations enabled AI advancements and shaped TSMC's 3D Fabric platform despite early commercial challenges.
Monday 8 December 2025
Samsung reportedly gains momentum in foundry and memory with improved 4nm yields
Samsung Electronics is reportedly gaining momentum across its foundry and memory operations as higher yields on its 4nm process and a broad recovery in DRAM demand position the company for a strong finish to 2025. South Korean analysts expect operating profit to reach as much as KRW19 trillion (US$13 billion) in the fourth quarter of 2025, significantly above market expectations.
Monday 8 December 2025
Geopolitics push AI chip packaging into Taiwan-US duopoly
Geopolitical realignments are accelerating a reshaping of the global outsourced assembly and test (OSAT) landscape. Industry analysts say that over the next five years, advanced AI-chip packaging capacity will consolidate around two critical hubs: Taiwan and the United States. The key beneficiaries are expected to be ASE Holdings and Siliconware Precision Industries (SPIL) in Taiwan, and Amkor Technology in the US and South Korea.
Monday 8 December 2025
TSMC expansion to drive record earnings for Taiwan engineering contractors through 2026

Taiwan's leading construction engineering contractors are on track to post record results in 2026 as TSMC accelerates advanced fab expansion at home and overseas to meet rising demand for artificial intelligence (AI) chips. United Integrated Services (UIS), Marketech International (MIC), L and K Engineering, Yankey Engineering, and Acter Group report strong profit momentum supported by large project backlogs tied to TSMC's new fabs and advanced packaging lines.

Monday 8 December 2025
Weekly news roundup: TSMC veteran's Intel move sparks debate, Samsung reportedly secures TPU HBM4 nod
These are the most-read DIGITIMES Asia stories in the week of December 1 to December 7, 2025.
Monday 8 December 2025
Ritek revives growth by becoming an AI infrastructure dark horse

Ritek Group CEO Wang Ting-chang said the group has long invested in AI-linked fields such as power, semiconductor materials, and packaging. Although invisible at the consumer end, Ritek has become an "invisible champion", supplying the tooling, materials, and power backup systems that underpin customers' AI deployment.

Sunday 7 December 2025
South Korea bets on airport GSE to break 90% power chip import lock
South Korea is racing to slash its more than 90% dependence on imported power semiconductors. Industry leaders warn that this reliance threatens the country's competitiveness in electric vehicles (EVs), data centers, and emerging mobility markets. Airport ground support equipment (GSE) has emerged as a strategic platform to validate and scale domestic power semiconductor technologies.
Saturday 6 December 2025
Huawei patent reveals DUV method to replicate 2nm-class chipmaking without EUV
A newly released filing from China's National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) shows Huawei submitted a patent in June 2022 outlining a method to achieve 2nm-class metal line patterning using only deep ultraviolet (DUV) lithography — potentially bypassing US export restrictions on advanced tools. The South China Morning Post reports the technique can create metal pitches under 21nm, a requirement typically met only with ASML's top-tier extreme ultraviolet (EUV) exposure systems, which remain off-limits to Huawei.
Saturday 6 December 2025
Fabship takes chip manufacturing into orbit as industry eyes Space-based fabs

As artificial intelligence (AI) accelerates the global semiconductor race—and as commercial space activity heats up—the idea of moving chip fabrication into orbit is edging from science fiction toward technological reality.

Saturday 6 December 2025
Taiwan taps tech strengths to accelerate smart healthcare push

Taiwan's smart-healthcare sector is gaining momentum, powered by decades of accumulated expertise in electronics and information and communications technology (ICT). Now, in an effort to accelerate the industry's upgrade and foster cross-sector collaboration, the Chinese National Association of Industry and Commerce (CNAIC) is launching a strategic partnership with the Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI). Their aim: start from real-world clinical and industry needs, link up technology developers, hospitals, and supply-chain players, and build a scalable model for deploying smart-medical solutions.

Friday 5 December 2025
UMC expands US supply chain with 8-inch wafer MOU with Polar Semiconductor
UMC has finalized plans to invest in the US semiconductor manufacturing sector by signing a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with American foundry Polar Semiconductor on December 4, 2025. The two companies will explore collaboration opportunities for 8-inch wafer production within the US, targeting growing demand from automotive, data center, consumer electronics, aerospace, and defense industries.