Intel is developing a new memory architecture aimed at challenging the dominance of high-bandwidth memory (HBM), with commercialization targeted for around 2030. Although the path is fraught with ecosystem barriers and compatibility hurdles, Intel's parallel development of Z-angle memory (ZAM) and cross-batch memory (XBM) underscores its determination to re-enter the DRAM market, as it simultaneously bets on AI compute and storage.
The AI boom is tightening an important but often overlooked part of the chip supply chain, with global readers likely to feel the effects through higher costs, delayed capacity, and uneven access to advanced processors. As demand for CPUs, GPUs, and ASICs rises, ABF substrate supply is tightening, and the squeeze is expected to last for years.
Quartz component suppliers are raising prices as higher raw material costs from gold wire and ceramic bases squeeze margins. Industry sources said ceramic base prices could climb by double-digit percentages, in some cases even doubling, pushing makers to pass on some of the increases.
Samsung Electronics and Samsung Display are jointly developing a next-generation glass interposer that could lower the cost of packaging high-performance chips, with prototypes potentially ready by the end of this year, The Elec reported, citing semiconductor industry sources.
China Life Insurance Company Limited plans to invest CNY4.999 billion (US$697 million) in a new CNY5 billion semiconductor private equity fund, extending Beijing's effort to direct long-term insurance capital into strategic chip technologies.
Taiwan's PCB industry is entering a new expansion cycle as investment in AI data centers and other emerging applications accelerates. Since 2025, several board makers and upstream material suppliers have launched large-scale fundraising plans at home and overseas, including three bellwethers: Zhen Ding Tech, Unimicron, and Compeq.
Bellwether Electronic has evolved from a connector and wire harness manufacturer into a technology developer shaping industry standards and generating patent licensing revenue by focusing on customer challenges in high-current connectors, high-density integration and foolproof connector design, according to Bellwether Electronic chairwoman Hsu Jui-ying, speaking at the Taiwan Venture Capital and Private Equity Annual Conference on July 7.
Wolfspeed's patent lawsuit against Navitas Semiconductor has opened a new front in the wide-bandgap power chip race, extending the legal fight across both gallium nitride and silicon carbide just as AI data centers, EVs and energy infrastructure raise the value of power-device IP.
Mitsubishi Chemical and Japan Steel Works are preparing a fresh capacity expansion in gallium nitride (GaN) substrates, aiming to capture growing demand from next-generation power semiconductors used in EVs, inverters and data center power systems.
Nvidia has denied reports that its next-generation Kyber AI rack system could be delayed to 2028, saying its product roadmap remains unchanged, after SemiAnalysis pointed to manufacturing challenges in a key PCB midplane as a potential bottleneck for the Rubin Ultra platform.
Analog Devices (ADI) announced that it has completed its acquisition of Empower Semiconductor, a move it said is designed to bolster the company's role as a comprehensive power partner spanning the entire AI ecosystem, from grid infrastructure to core computing systems.
Infineon has secured a final US import ban against Innoscience after the US International Trade Commission's May 7 ruling was upheld following the presidential review period, confirming that the Chinese GaN power semiconductor maker infringed an Infineon patent. The decision blocks the import and sale of Innoscience's infringing gallium nitride (GaN) products in the US market.
