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Friday 6 February 2026
South Korean president meets conglomerate chiefs as Samsung, others pledge US$186b in regional investments

South Korean President Lee Jae-myung recently convened a meeting at the Blue House titled the "Corporate Roundtable on Youth Employment and Expanded Regional Investment," bringing together leaders from the country's 10 largest conglomerates, including Samsung Electronics, Hyundai Motor and LG Group, along with representatives from the financial sector. Lee urged companies to work with the government to promote youth employment, entrepreneurship and more balanced regional development.

Friday 6 February 2026
India's 2026–27 budget signals systemic overhaul for manufacturing, semiconductors, and digital investment
India's Union Budget for fiscal year 2026–27, unveiled on February 1, 2026, emphasizes manufacturing, semiconductors, and AI-linked infrastructure as central pillars of economic growth. The measures aim to strengthen supply chains, reduce import dependence, and institutionalize compliance frameworks for both domestic and foreign investors.
Friday 6 February 2026
Transcend sees 4x revenue surge in January 2026 as memory prices rise
Memory module maker Transcend Information reported a record high monthly consolidated revenue of NT$4.76 billion (US$150.4 million) in January 2026, driven by soaring demand for AI servers, large-scale industrial control shipments, and steadily rising memory prices.
Friday 6 February 2026
Samsung foundry said to plan 10% price hike for 4nm, 8nm nodes
Samsung Electronics' foundry business is reportedly preparing price increases for certain process technologies, including 4nm and 8nm nodes, with hikes reportedly around 10%. Despite the adjustment, Samsung is expected to maintain a pricing advantage over TSMC as TSMC continues to raise its own wafer prices.
Friday 6 February 2026
TSMC’s 3nm bet in Japan signals a deeper Taiwan-Japan tech pact
To meet the surging demand driven by AI, TSMC is upgrading its second wafer fab under construction in Kumamoto, Japan, to use more advanced 3nm process technology. This development was personally conveyed by TSMC chairman C.C. Wei to Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi.
Friday 6 February 2026
Samsung vows 130% growth in 2nm orders, eyes major customers besides Tesla
The global competition for advanced wafer foundry processes is intensifying, with Samsung Electronics recently announcing that its 2nm process will focus on artificial intelligence (AI) chips. The company projects a more than 130% increase in 2nm order volume in 2026 compared to 2025, signaling an aggressive push to catch up with TSMC.
Friday 6 February 2026
The Kumamoto master plan: behind TSMC's strategic leap to 3nm supremacy
TSMC is doubling down on Japan. By upgrading its second Kumamoto facility to 3-nanometer production, the chipmaking giant has turned what was once a secondary supply-chain hedge into a cornerstone of its global strategy to dominate advanced AI silicon.
Friday 6 February 2026
Commentary: Why TSMC is upgrading Japan's Kumamoto fab from 6nm to 3nm
TSMC has made a significant change in its process plan for the Kumamoto second fab, confirming an upgrade from the initially planned 6/7nm node to 3nm. This facility will become Japan's first 3nm wafer fab, while Japan-backed Rapidus advances toward 2nm development.
Friday 6 February 2026
ASE expects advanced packaging and testing revenue to double in 2026
OSAT leader ASE Technology Holding is optimistic that its growth momentum will extend through 2026 and beyond, benefiting from the short supply of advanced packaging and testing capacity. COO Tien Wu said order visibility has improved over the past three months, prompting the company to further raise its 2026 advanced packaging and testing revenue target to US$3.2 billion. This would represent a doubling from US$1.6 billion in 2025, and is more than 20% higher than the previous forecast of US$2.6 billion. Of the total, 75% is expected to come from advanced packaging, with the remaining 25% contributed by advanced testing.
Friday 6 February 2026
Rapidus draws US$1b in private capital to revive Japan's leading-edge chip ambitions
Japanese semiconductor startup Rapidus has secured more than JPY160 billion (US$1.02 billion) in private funding for fiscal 2025, surpassing its initial JPY130 billion target, according to a report by Nikkei on February 4. SoftBank Group and Sony Group each invested JPY21 billion to become the company's largest shareholders, while IBM is also reportedly preparing to join the round, adding international backing. The funding surge signals strong investor confidence and aligns with Japan's push to reinforce domestic semiconductor self-sufficiency.
Friday 6 February 2026
Infineon announces price hikes up to 25%; Taiwanese power semiconductor makers plan to follow in 2Q26
Given frequent price increases across precious metals, wafer foundry services, and packaging and testing, Infineon's announcement of price increases is very telling for the market. The company will implement price adjustments for power switches and IC products starting April 1, 2026, and it is rumored that the maximum price adjustment reaches as high as 25%. Some Taiwanese companies plan to renegotiate prices for new orders after the Lunar New Year and in the second quarter of 2026.
Friday 6 February 2026
CSPs turn to custom silicon to break Nvidia dependence
The global boom in generative artificial intelligence is driving an insatiable demand for computing power. This is pushing the world's largest cloud service providers to rethink a long-standing dependence on Nvidia's AI GPUs.
Friday 6 February 2026
PSMC narrows losses as DRAM prices and AI demand boost revenue
Powerchip Semiconductor Manufacturing Corporation, one of Taiwan's smaller but strategically positioned chipmakers, reported a sharp narrowing of losses in the fourth quarter of 2025, buoyed by rising memory prices, a stronger US dollar, and income from an overseas partnership with India's Tata Group.
Friday 6 February 2026
ASE Technology posts 3-year profit high on strong advanced packaging orders in 4Q25
Global outsourced semiconductor assembly and test (OSAT) leader ASE Technology Holding held its earnings call, revealing that robust demand for advanced semiconductor packaging services drove growth throughout 2025. ASE's chief operating officer, Tien Wu, highlighted that the company's full-year consolidated revenue posted growth in 2025, with advanced test materials revenue increasing 23%.
Friday 6 February 2026
CHPT sees AI, AP drive load board shipments with January revenue up
Chunghwa Precision Test Tech (CHPT) reported year-over-year and month-over-month revenue growth in January. The surge was mainly driven by strong demand for AI, application processor (AP), and related chip testing services, which significantly boosted the usage of test load boards.
Thursday 5 February 2026
Samsung strengthens semiconductor supply chain cybersecurity to prevent tech leaks
As global competition in the semiconductor industry intensifies, the focus is no longer limited to technology and production capacity. Protection of data, intellectual property, and supply chains has become an equally critical battleground.
Thursday 5 February 2026
Renesas posts first annual loss in six years as 1Q26 margin rebounds to 32%
Renesas Electronics forecast a sharp improvement in profitability for the January to March quarter as growth in data center and other industrial infrastructure demand offsets weakness in automotive, after the Japanese chipmaker swung to its first annual net loss since fiscal 2019.
Thursday 5 February 2026
The 3nm surprise: TSMC's C.C. Wei pulls PM Takaichi's own book from his pocket to seal US$17B deal
In a moment that blurred the lines between corporate diplomacy and fan-like devotion, TSMC CEO C.C. Wei turned a high-stakes semiconductor summit into a personal tribute on February 5, 2026.
Thursday 5 February 2026
Asia Photonics Expo 2026 opens in Singapore, spotlighting photonics-semiconductor ties
The third edition of the Asia Photonics Expo (APE) opened on February 4, 2026, at the Sands Expo and Convention Centre, bringing together the global photonics and semiconductor ecosystem for three days of networking, conferences, and industry collaboration through February 6, 2026.
Thursday 5 February 2026
Commentary: How TSMC's C.C. Wei solidifies global alliances from Washington to Tokyo
In the high-stakes theater of global chipmaking, TSMC Chairman C.C. Wei has mastered a rare skill: the art of the well-timed strategic masterstroke.
Thursday 5 February 2026
Skytech delivers self-made PLP equipment, eyes record 2026 growth
As advanced packaging technologies continue to evolve toward larger sizes and panel formats, Skytech CEO George Yi stated that in response to the key process requirements of next-generation chip-on-panel-on-substrate (CoPoS) advanced packaging, the company has completed delivery of the world's first 310mm by 310mm panel-level packaging physical vapor deposition (PLP PVD) equipment. The equipment has been successfully introduced into the production line of a major semiconductor packaging and testing plant in Kaohsiung, Taiwan.
Thursday 5 February 2026
Siemens expands EDA stack with AI metrology acquisition of Canopus AI
Siemens has acquired French startup Canopus AI, adding AI-based metrology and inspection software to its electronic design automation (EDA) portfolio as it expands deeper into semiconductor manufacturing workflows.
Thursday 5 February 2026
TSMC goes all-in on Japan: Kumamoto Fab 2 upgraded to 3nm powerhouse
TSMC has formulated a plan to mass-produce advanced 3nm chips in Kumamoto Prefecture, marking an unprecedented move within Japan. The company has notified the Japanese government of this initiative, with estimated equipment investment reaching US$17 billion.
Thursday 5 February 2026
Qualcomm reports record 1QFY26 results, flags memory constraints in near-term outlook
Qualcomm reported record financial results for its fiscal first quarter of 2026, while guiding lower for the current quarter as memory supply constraints begin to weigh on handset production.
Thursday 5 February 2026
Alphabet's US$185 billion hardware mandate: Breaking the AI supply bottleneck

Alphabet has signaled a transformative shift in its industrial strategy, unveiling a massive, sustained hardware build-out designed to break a persistent supply-side bottleneck.