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Thursday 29 January 2026

Taiwan, US expand AI, drone cooperation under Pax Silica framework

Taiwan's Minister of Economic Affairs, Ming-hsin Kung, joined senior US State Department officials on January 27, 2026, in the US to conclude the sixth US-Taiwan Economic Prosperity Partnership Dialogue (EPPD). The two sides signed a joint statement on the Pax Silica Declaration and US-Taiwan Cooperation on Economic Security.

Thursday 29 January 2026

Foxconn Industrial Internet drives growth in high-end computing market through cloud and AI server focus

Foxconn's subsidiary, Foxconn Industrial Internet (FII), is accelerating its operational shift toward the high-performance computing market, driven by dual engines of cloud and AI businesses. FII highlighted that in 2025, cloud service provider (CSP) related operations will become the main growth driver, especially as AI servers and high-performance general-purpose servers ramp up. This expansion in cloud product lines not only fuels rapid revenue growth but also significantly enhances FII's product mix and profitability structure.

Thursday 29 January 2026

A year of transformation: Tesla pivots to Robotaxis and domestic chip production

Tesla is entering what executives describe as a "turning point" year. As the company pushes forward with robotaxi deployment and Full Self-Driving (FSD) technology, it must also navigate potential bottlenecks in global semiconductor supply that could define its medium-term growth.

Thursday 29 January 2026

Musk moves Tesla past Model S and X, betting on robots and AI

Tesla reported fourth-quarter earnings on Wednesday that topped Wall Street's profit expectations despite the fact that its revenue had slipped and vehicle deliveries continued to decline.

Thursday 29 January 2026

Microsoft tops US$50b cloud milestone as AI capex surges and Copilot adoption accelerates

Microsoft's earnings conference call for the fiscal second quarter of 2026 underscored a company accelerating into an AI-first era—while also confronting investor scrutiny over the scale of its infrastructure spending.

Thursday 29 January 2026

Upstream firms say US investment unprofitable if gross margin below 50%

Following the signing of the Taiwan-US investment cooperation memorandum of understanding (MOU), the next step is to finalize the agreement on reciprocal trade (ART) between the two countries. As Taiwanese supply chains pursue strategies of making collective moves in the US, some companies express willingness to follow the lead of TSMC, the world's largest contract chipmaker who is investing enormous sums in building wafer fabs in the US. However, upstream players admit that with high production costs in the US, investments may not be profitable unless their gross margins exceed 50%.

Thursday 29 January 2026

Sunny Optical restructures as China's lens makers face layoffs prompted by smartphone slump

China's optical industry is confronting significant challenges as several lens module manufacturers reportedly plan layoffs early in 2026, prompted by sluggish smartphone sales and intense price competition. Industry sources indicate that the sector's difficulties are unlikely to abate in the coming year due to persistent market and macroeconomic pressures.

Thursday 29 January 2026

Semco and LG Innotek push into humanoid robot supply chain

As artificial intelligence (AI) technology advances, the robotics market is maturing rapidly. South Korean electronic component makers are reportedly viewing robots as their next growth engine. According to ChosunBiz, major South Korean component manufacturers now consider parts for humanoid robots among key mid-to-long-term growth drivers.

Thursday 29 January 2026

Taiwan and Germany expand trade ties as demand for chips and green tech rises

As demand accelerates for digital transformation, energy transition, and smart manufacturing, Taiwan and Germany appear poised to expand cooperation across a widening range of industries, including semiconductors, advanced machinery, green technologies, and applied innovation.

Thursday 29 January 2026

Column: How chip value spillover is redefining Taiwan's economic and industrial trajectory

I describe the close integration of Taiwan's semiconductor and electronics industries as the spillover of chip economic value. In earlier phases of the industry, economic value creation in electronic systems was highly concentrated at the chip level. Advancing process nodes alone was sufficient to capture most of the value. That model no longer holds. Today, improvements in manufacturing technology must propagate beyond wafer fabrication to packaging, testing, and ultimately system-level integration to translate into tradable economic value.

Thursday 29 January 2026

Why can't tech giants escape China's smartphone production grip?

Global technology companies, including Google, are increasingly shifting new product introduction (NPI) stages away from China to reduce geopolitical risks, with recent reports indicating Google has begun relocating NPI for its premium smartphones to Vietnam. Industry insiders note initial progress but emphasize significant structural hurdles in this complex transition.

Wednesday 28 January 2026

Mouser Electronics expands manufacturer lineup with 63 new partners in 2025

Mouser Electronics, a global authorized distributor of electronic components and industrial automation products, added 63 new manufacturers to its line card in 2025, further increasing the range of components available to design engineers and purchasing professionals. The distributor also introduced more than 40,000 new part numbers over the year.

Wednesday 28 January 2026

Corning signs up to US$6 billion supply agreement with Meta for US data center expansion

Corning and Meta Platforms have agreed to a multiyear deal valued at up to US$6 billion to supply optical fiber, cable, and connectivity solutions for Meta's US data center expansion. The agreement aims to support Meta's applications, technologies, and AI infrastructure needs.

Wednesday 28 January 2026

Post-CES 2026: China leads humanoids, South Korea rivals the US

Humanoid robots are the next frontier of embodied intelligence, and CES 2026 was proof that Chinese companies are in the lead. Among the 38 humanoid robot companies that exhibited at the show, 21 were Chinese. Companies from South Korea also demonstrated significant progress, now on par with the US.

Wednesday 28 January 2026

Taiwan-US tariff resolution to boost machine tool industry, signaling structural recovery and growth

Following the resolution of tariffs between Taiwan and the US, market concerns are expected to ease, leading to clearer procurement signals from end users and fostering optimism that the machine tool industry will recover from recent downturns. Industry experts indicate that this development is likely to result in a structurally driven rebound rather than a short-term uptick.

Wednesday 28 January 2026

Efun Technology's shift toward niche optical films signals broader industry disruption amid supply chain challenges

The optical film industry is undergoing significant upheaval as disruptions in the red supply chain force manufacturers to rethink their business models. Taiwan-based Efun Technology has adopted a "low volume, high quality" strategy, focusing on specialized products such as water-blocking films and satellite space-environment protective films. Water-blocking films are projected to become a major revenue contributor by 2026, while protective films for satellites have already secured manufacturing contracts with a US low-earth orbit (LEO) satellite customer.

Wednesday 28 January 2026

Accton enters global top 20 EMS/ODM as AI products double revenue

DIGITIMES recently tracked the 2025 revenues of the world's top 20 EMS/ODM companies, with nine Taiwanese firms making the list, including Foxconn, Wistron (including Wiwynn), Quanta, Pegatron, Compal, Inventec, Accton, Qisda, and Universal Scientific Industrial (USI) listed in China.

Wednesday 28 January 2026

AI EXPO Taiwan 2026 to expand, unveiling new AI industry blueprint on March 25

The largest annual artificial intelligence (AI) ecosystem event, AI EXPO Taiwan 2026, is confirmed to take place from March 25-27, 2026, at the Taipei Expo Dome. Compared to previous years, this edition will collaborate internationally with AI EXPO Korea, AI+ Power Hong Kong, and Tech Week Singapore to create a global exhibition zone, showcasing Taiwan's leadership in international AI technology exchange.

Wednesday 28 January 2026

South Korea's trade with Vietnam grows strongly; sets export value record in 2025

South Korea's total export value surpassed US$700 billion for the first time in 2025, with Vietnam remaining the third-largest trading partner and the second-largest source of South Korea's trade surplus. Booming semiconductor exports largely drove the growth.

Tuesday 27 January 2026

TSMC and Nvidia ignite AI growth, Taiwan supply chain accelerates expansion

With strong demand for AI servers, TSMC—holding the vast majority of AI chip orders—is executing major expansions in advanced process technology and packaging capacity. As TSMC and Nvidia light the way for AI development, related semiconductor and electronics suppliers across Taiwan are investing heavily to boost production capabilities in response to surging orders.

Tuesday 27 January 2026

US shows endorsement of Taiwan industry by granting MFN status on Section 232 tariffs, Taiwan officials say

Taiwan's finance minister and central bank governor have welcomed the US promise to extend most-favored-nation treatment under Section 232 tariffs, calling it a strong endorsement of Taiwan's industries in the trade negotiations between the two countries.

Tuesday 27 January 2026

Taiwan's machine tool industry faces pressure; China, Japan, and South Korea still struggle, even with price edge

The removal of US tariffs on Taiwan's machine tools has leveled the playing field with major competitors Japan and South Korea, offering some relief to the industry. However, while this short-term resolution eases concerns, long-term challenges such as exchange rate fluctuations remain unresolved. Even as market doubts fade and demand shows signs of recovery, Taiwanese manufacturers cannot afford complacency.

Tuesday 27 January 2026

Column: From black-and-white TVs to AI chips, Taiwan's export leadership continues

Taiwan's information and communications technology (ICT) sector—dominated by the semiconductor industry and Electronics Manufacturing Services (EMS)—accounted for 65.2% of Taiwan's exports in 2024. This share is projected to rise to roughly 74% in 2025, reflecting the island's unique position in global industrial competition and underscoring profound implications for the country's future industrial trajectory.

Tuesday 27 January 2026

India, EU strike trade pact as Trump tariffs force global realignment

India and the EU have finalized negotiations on a landmark free trade agreement (FTA), a move hailed as historic by both sides as they navigate strained relations with the US and global trade volatility, Reuters reported on January 26, 2026. The pact, expected to be announced on January 27, 2026, at the India-EU Summit in New Delhi, opens the door for free trade of goods between India and the 27-nation EU bloc, which together represent roughly a quarter of the world's GDP and a market of 2 billion consumers.

Tuesday 27 January 2026

Sanmina reports surge in revenue driven by AI infrastructure expansion

Sanmina announced a robust start to fiscal year 2026, reporting a 59% year-over-year increase in revenue for its first quarter ended December 27, 2025. The company's performance was significantly bolstered by the integration of ZT Systems and a surge in demand across the communications networks, cloud, and AI infrastructure end markets. Management expressed high confidence in the company's trajectory, aiming to double total revenue over the next two years primarily through massive opportunities in the artificial intelligence sector.

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