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Sep 23, 13:07
Nvidia's 800V power shift hands Taiwan's capacitor makers a new AI segment

As AI computing workloads surge, demand for higher GPU and CPU performance is triggering exponential growth in data center power density and energy consumption. Nvidia's transition toward an 800V high-voltage direct current (HVDC) power architecture is driving hardware upgrades across sidecar power cabinets and battery backup units (BBUs), while spurring demand for customized high-voltage NP0 (C0G) multilayer ceramic capacitors (MLCCs).

SKC is increasing its investment in its US glass substrate subsidiary Absolics, raising its stake to more than 82%, as the South Korean materials group commits more capital to a business that remains in customer evaluation and testing ahead of volume production.

Biwin Storage Technology plans to invest CNY4.5 billion (approx. US$672 million) in the third phase of its wafer-level advanced packaging and testing project, expanding 2.5D integration and compute-memory co-packaging capacity as AI and high-performance computing lift demand for advanced packaging.

ZDT prices US$800M ECB to expand AI server PCB push
Sep 23, 14:40

Printed circuit board (PCB) maker Zhen Ding Technology (ZDT) Group completed pricing of its sixth overseas convertible bond issue on September 22, raising a total of US$800 million (about NT$25.224 billion). The company plans to issue the bonds on September 29 and list them on the Singapore Exchange, with proceeds to be used entirely to replenish working capital and support technology development for high-end products.

Hermes-Epitek eyes CPO test revenue in 2027
Sep 23, 14:14

Archie Hwang, the founder and chairman of Hermes-Epitek, appeared before the media alongside Hermes Testing Solutions Inc. (HTSI) executives. The company outlined a major push into silicon photonics (SiPh) co-packaged optics (CPO) testing and said related revenue is expected to begin contributing in 2027.

Nexperia China is accelerating production on its domestic 12-inch wafer platform as it rebuilds a locally controlled semiconductor supply chain spanning design, wafer production, packaging, and testing.

Episil Precision said AI-related demand is reshaping semiconductor epitaxy for the long term, with effects reaching global power and optical supply chains. The Taiwan-based maker is expanding in silicon, GaN, SiC, and GeSi to serve AI servers, optical communications, and mature-node power components worldwide.
Taiwan is stepping up outreach to India's engineering sector as global competition for chip and artificial intelligence talent intensifies. The planned cooperation could affect supply chains, university links, and where skilled graduates build careers, with implications for chipmaking hubs in Asia and beyond.
Optical communications capacity is in short supply as surging computing demand from AI data centers turns transmission into a bottleneck for AI infrastructure. The market is shifting toward combined optical-and-copper solutions, while optical communications rapidly advances toward 800G and 1.6T, prompting compound semiconductor foundry Win Semiconductors to expand its photodiode (PD) and laser diode (LD) capacity and co-develop 200G components with customers.
China has tightened the security and reliability framework around its domestic computing stack, with the latest official evaluation placing Huawei's Ascend 950 at Level II and Kunlunxin's M100 at Level I among AI training and inference chips. The same assessment also gave the highest Level III rating to several general-purpose CPUs, including Loongson and HiSilicon Kunpeng products, signalling that certification is becoming a more structured gatekeeper for China's locally developed compute infrastructure.
US photonics company Lightmatter has launched an optical module that sends and receives data over a single strand of fiber. The company says this halves the cabling needed to connect GPUs in large AI clusters.
SiPearl, a fabless company backed by the European Union and France, has delivered the first Rhea1 CPU samples to Bull for integration into Europe's JUPITER supercomputer, moving the European-designed processor from bring-up and validation into customer system integration while benchmarking continues.