Chunghwa Telecom (CHT) reported consolidated revenue of NT$675.9 billion (US$2.06 billion) for the third quarter of 2026, up 16.7% year over year, with revenue, operating profit, net income attributable to shareholders, and earnings per share all exceeding the high end of its financial forecast.

Rising global oil prices have driven up food costs, squeezing consumer discretionary budgets for products with higher price elasticity, such as smartphones and consumer electronics. A specialized report from Taiwan's Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) reveals that in 2025, global ICT goods and services exports reached US$3.6 trillion and US$1.4 trillion, respectively. Saturated market demand capped average annual export growth for telecommunications equipment and consumer electronics at just 2.5% and 0.9%, respectively.

AI data centers are accelerating demand for high-speed optical communications, extending competition in the optical transceiver market beyond chips and module manufacturing to critical upstream materials. Indium phosphide (InP), a key substrate for high-speed optical lasers and optoelectronic devices, is increasingly sought after as 800G and 1.6T transceivers gain traction. With capacity expansion requiring time and product qualification presenting technical hurdles, securing InP wafer supplies has become a strategic priority for optical communications companies.

Qualcomm has secured a role in SpaceX's planned US terrestrial mobile network, turning Starlink Mobile's ambitions for integrated satellite and ground-based connectivity into a named infrastructure deployment. Announced November 4, the multi-year agreement calls for rollout to begin in 2027, with tens of thousands of sites planned over the life of the deal.

Taiwan and the Netherlands announced four joint research and development collaborations on November 4 under their bilateral Technology Bridge Program, targeting photonic packaging, 5G and 6G communications, AI data center connectivity, and quantum computing. The agreements were unveiled during PIC Summit Europe as both sides sought to deepen semiconductor cooperation and strengthen supply chain resilience despite having no formal diplomatic relations.

Weblink International Inc. reported record profit for both the third quarter of 2026 and the first three quarters, driven by growing enterprise AI adoption and sales of new products. The company's board approved its third-quarter 2026 financial report on November 3.

Chunghwa Telecom (CHT) is expanding its partnership with Google beyond Google One, YouTube Premium and Pixel smartphone sales to include GenAI services. On November 4, CHT announced plans to introduce Google's latest AI offerings through its channels, while Google Taiwan said the partners will launch more initiatives in 2027 to promote AI-enabled living.

China-based optical communications module maker Zhongji InnoLight reported strong results for the third quarter of 2026 as global AI infrastructure expansion drove robust demand for high-speed optical transceiver modules and increased shipments of 800G and 1.6T products. Revenue reached CNY27.769 billion (US$4.17 billion), up 171.83% year over year, while net profit attributable to the parent company rose 173.74% to CNY8.587 billion.

Marvell's proposed US$115 billion acquisition of Lumentum could bring Taiwanese optical component makers more orders, industry sources in Taiwan say. The deal, due to close in the first half of 2028, would combine Marvell's chip design and optical module capabilities with Lumentum's laser technology and manufacturing capacity.

Universal Scientific Industrial (USI), a subsidiary of ASE, plans to launch Wi-Fi 8 (IEEE 802.11bn) products in the first quarter of 2027, building on its experience developing and integrating Wi-Fi 6E and Wi-Fi 7 system-in-package (SiP) solutions to help customers capture new opportunities in wireless connectivity innovation.

Japan's Mitsui Kinzoku has announced its third capacity expansion plan since the start of fiscal 2026 for MicroThin, its ultrathin copper foil used in optical communications equipment. The company is accelerating production expansion to meet sustained growth in market demand.

As AI and large-scale data center buildouts drive up data transmission speeds, heat is becoming increasingly concentrated in key components. This has drawn attention to ceramic substrates and higher-performance aluminum nitride (AlN) substrates for use in optical communications and advanced packaging. Supply chain sources say, however, that metal adhesion remains a major engineering challenge, one that industry participants are reluctant to discuss publicly.

Taiwan Mobile (TWM) said its buy now, pay later (BNPL) service is expanding beyond e-commerce checkout to travel, pet care, and other consumer scenarios, driven by the growth of atypical employment and rising demand for flexible payments. The service, branded "OP Pay," had 49.9% more cumulative users as of the end of September 2026 than at the end of September 2025.

Millimeter-wave (mmWave) technology was previously used mainly in military and aerospace applications, where costs were extremely high. Now, as high-frequency communications and non-terrestrial network (NTN) technologies gain momentum, new opportunities are opening up across the communications industry.

Eutelsat said that it predicts at least EUR10 billion (US$11.2 billion) in revenue from 2032 to 2040 as it leads the EU's low Earth orbit (LEO) network initiative IRIS2. The European satellite player is viewed by the EU to be a homegrown alternative to SpaceX's Starlink satellite service and a key to reducing technological reliance on the US.

Huawei has extended its semiconductor-focused "Tau (τ) Law" framework to 5G base station design, using co-design across algorithms, chip architectures, and high-speed interconnects to boost baseband processing efficiency and enhance the wireless user experience. The company unveiled its OSCAR intelligent channel-processing solution, its next-generation UBBPi baseband series, and the VitaAAU active antenna unit for the U6GHz band, with the VitaAAU already entering commercial deployment in select overseas markets.

Global satellite service revenue is projected to grow 44% over the next decade, reaching US$145 billion by 2035, according to the 33rd edition of Novaspace's Satellite Connectivity and Video Market report, released in October 2026.

FarEasTone Telecommunications signed a cooperation agreement with Direct-to-Device (D2D) satellite communications provider Elveo Mobile on October 27 to expand satellite-to-phone services in Taiwan. The partnership will integrate D2D capabilities with FarEasTone's existing terrestrial mobile network, supporting broader coverage, stronger communications resilience, and a future integrated space-and-ground network.

South Korean telecommunications provider SK Telecom (SKT) has reportedly established Hy-TF, a task force dedicated to AI collaboration with SK Hynix, to upgrade its digital-twin and data-platform businesses and develop new B2B services.

Tata Communications announced on October 26 that it plans to invest US$400-450 million in approximately 10,000 kilometers of long-haul fiber across India, linking data centers and AI hubs as it expands its connectivity business. The network will connect domestic corridors with its global backbone.

India's tech push opens markets unevenly: foreign suppliers get first crack at Tata's fab, Lam courts local vendors, Jio's IPO tests its 5G pitch, and CleanMax powers AI data centers.

SpaceX has firmly established itself in direct-to-device connectivity through Starlink's expanding satellite constellation. But the space giant is now pushing beyond orbital coverage as it seeks an equally consequential position in terrestrial mobile infrastructure.

Chunghwa Telecom (CHT) has established a new subsidiary, CHT Intelligent Vision Solutions (IVS), spinning off an internal team focused on smart security and intelligent video analytics. The new company will target enterprise security, public safety, and smart-city applications, while taking Taiwanese hardware partners overseas.

Jio Platforms' initial public offering, the largest in India's history, asks investors to back more than a mobile network. In its prospectus, the operator that built its business on cheap data pitches a home-grown 5G stack and an AI engine it plans to sell to operators abroad, even though telecom still generates almost 90% of its revenue, according to Reuters.

Chief Telecom has begun construction of its new AI data center in the Huwei section of the Central Taiwan Science Park (CTSP), with an investment of NT$3.3 billion (US$101.8 million). Chairman Jerry Shao said the facility's reservation and contract rate has exceeded 50%, with international cloud service providers (CSPs) and fintech companies making up most of the customers.