AI Gossip

Siliconware Precision (SPIL) broke ground Tuesday on an NT$100 billion (US$3.1B) CoWoS advanced packaging plant in Douliu, central Taiwan, aimed at massive AI-related demand, media report, adding SPIL’s new plant investments in the past 2-years total NT$200 billion. SPIL is a key Nvidia packaging partner. TSMC outsources some parts of CoWoS work to the group SPIL is part of, ASE Holding. TSMC will also certify ‘copy exact’ partners, which SPIL’s facilities are designed to match. $Advanced Semiconductor Engineering(ASX.US) $Taiwan Semiconductor(TSM.US) $NVIDIA(NVDA.US) #semiconductors

Source: Dan Nystedt

Alchip, a top custom ASIC chip designer, said July sales rose 181.8% year-on-year to a new all-time-high NT$7.43 billion, also more than doubling June’s NT$3.57 billion, as products in mass production increased, media report. The chips are for a major US client, Amazon Trainium3, made on TSMC N3P. $Amazon(AMZN.US) $Taiwan Semiconductor(TSM.US) #semiconductors

Source: Dan Nystedt

Price hikes for semiconductor packaging are outpacing those for chip foundry work and increases throughout the chip supply chain will continue into the 2nd half of 2026, media report, citing executives on 2nd quarter earnings calls and unnamed industry sources. AI-related demand is crowding out all other production, even causing production cuts as capacity is revamped to meet AI demand. The story quotes chip designers Realtek, Parade, GMT specifically talking about price increases, while MediaTek called the increases “pass throughs” since all new costs are passed on to clients. $Advanced Semiconductor Engineering(ASX.US) $Amkor Tech(AMKR.US) $NVIDIA(NVDA.US) $Amazon(AMZN.US) $Alphabet(GOOGL.US) $Microsoft(MSFT.US) $Meta Platforms(META.US) $Alibaba(BABA.US) $Baidu(BIDU.US) $Tencent(TCEHY.US) #semiconductors

Source: Dan Nystedt

🚨 $Advanced Semiconductor Engineering(ASX.US) JULY '26 ATM REVENUE🚨

Source: Chips & Wafers

TSMC’s revenue +44.7% year-on-year in July to a fresh record high NT$467.58 billion (US$14.61B), amid robust global AI-related demand.

Source: Dan Nystedt

Taiwan’s semiconductor exports rose 52.3% year-on-year in July to US$26.3 billion, while exports of IT/comms rose 29.5% to $31.37B amid strong AI-related demand, while July exports overall rose 32.9% to $75.3B, missing forecasts for 40.7% due to inflation and a prolonged war in the Middle East, media report, adding officials say full year exports are on track to exceed NT$27.5 trillion (US$850B). Imports rose 37.4% to $58.13B. Semiconductor equipment imports rose 39% to $1.31B. $Taiwan Semiconductor(TSM.US) $NVIDIA(NVDA.US) $Alphabet(GOOGL.US) $Amazon(AMZN.US) #semiconductors

Source: Dan Nystedt

TSMC is expected to build 3 new fabs, including a 1.4nm fab near Longtan, north Taiwan, after local residents revived a plan to expand the Longtan Science Park, media report. TSMC abandoned plans for the area in 2023 after locals protested, but they have reportedly had a change of heart after seeing how much land values rose in Kaohsiung (south) and elsewhere after TSMC fabs moved in. $Taiwan Semiconductor(TSM.US) #semiconductors

Source: Dan Nystedt

The 2027 global semiconductor market will soar 29.4% year-on-year to US$2.14 trillion, WSTS forecasts, passing the $2 trillion mark years before most market forecasters thought.

Source: Dan Nystedt

Ardentec plans to invest NT$6 billion (US$185M) in new chip testing lines due to strong AI-related demand, media report, its 3rd investment in Taiwan this year. The investment is via 100%-owned subsidiary Giga Solution Tech. Co. Ltd. The money will be for new production lines and equipment for plants in the Hsinchu Science Park and in Hukou. $Teradyne(TER.US) #Advantest #ChromaATE #semiconductors

Source: Dan Nystedt

TSMC and one of Taiwan’s top engineering schools have made a breakthrough in next-generation transistors with a high-performance, single-layer molybdenum disulfide (MoS₂) top-gate transistor, media report, adding researchers globally have been looking at novel materials as a way to move chip technology further below 1nm. MoS₂ could be used in 0.7nm chips (7-Angstrom) and CFET architectures, the chip industry’s main next-generation transistor architecture. (Complimentary Field-Effect Transistor). TSMC worked with a research team from National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University (NYCU). $Taiwan Semiconductor(TSM.US) #semiconductors

Source: Dan Nystedt

Winbond, Taiwan’s 2nd biggest memory chip maker, plans to become the top SLC NAND supplier in the world by 2027, media report, amid rising demand from a range of new businesses: robotics, drones, Low-Earth-Orbit (LEO) satellites, in addition to industrial control and automotive. NAND Flash revenue +65% in the 2nd quarter, and SLC NAND accounted for 40%.

Source: Dan Nystedt

$Advanced Semiconductor Engineering(ASX.US) filed ~$160M of equipment POs in the last 48hrs:

Source: Chips & Wafers

Foxconn is expected to see August sales top NT$1 trillion (US$30.9B) for a fresh record high, and subsequent months to continue higher due to strong AI server related demand, media report. AI server sales are up 230% in the 1st half of 2026 due to strong sales of new products (Nvidia GB300, upcoming Vera Rubin), while the 2nd half is also peak season for consumer devices like iPhones, Google Pixel smartphones, more.

Source: Dan Nystedt

Nanya Technology’s board approved to raise 2026 capex to NT$69.7 billion (US$2.2 billion) from NT$52 billion to speed up work on its new Fab 5A, media report, which is ultimately expected to cost up to NT$346.6 billion (US$10.7B) by 2029. It’s the biggest investment by a Taiwan DRAM maker in 20-years. $Micron Tech(MU.US) $SK Hynix(SKHY.US) $SSNLF $Applied Materials(AMAT.US) $KLA(KLAC.US) $Lam Research(LRCX.US) #semiconductors

Source: Dan Nystedt

Wistron Chairman Simon Lin said AI servers currently account for 95% of its server business and that the AI trend is so strong that even high memory chip prices haven’t slowed customer spending, media report, adding he doesn’t fear even higher memory prices because “customers will still buy.” He said Wistron’s business has been mainly from one major enterprise client, but new enterprise clients will start taking shipments in the 2nd half. $NVIDIA(NVDA.US) $Dell Tech(DELL.US) $Hewlett Packard Enterprise(HPE.US)

Source: Dan Nystedt

Inventec, the AI server maker, said July sales rose 65.75 year-on-year to NT$90.2 billion (US$2.8B), its 2nd best level ever, media report, and management said its server business will see strong double-digit % growth in the 3rd quarter over the 2nd. $Alibaba(BABA.US) $Baidu(BIDU.US) $Tencent(TCEHY.US) #AIservers

Source: Dan Nystedt

Foxconn: July sales rose 54.2% year-on-year to NT$946.5 billion, a fresh record high and the 1st time over NT$900 billion in a single month, on strong demand and pull-in orders for AI-related products & components. July was up 15.2% over June.

Source: Dan Nystedt

ABF substrate makers are being forced to move faster on expansion plans as AI chip die get bigger, driving demand for larger substrates, media report, noting long term agreements (LTAs) are no longer enough: clients are paying firms to launch 2029-2030 expansion plans now, using a variety of methods:

Source: Dan Nystedt

Silicon wafer production continues to tighten as demand recovers, said GlobalWafers, the world’s 3rd biggest maker, adding 12-inch, 8-inch and 6-inch capacity is nearly full, media report. Chair Doris Hsu said 2027 will see meaningful revenue growth as new 12-inch capacity comes online in Texas and Italy (Novara), along with the ramp up of high-end wafers such as SOI (Silicon-On-Insulator). GlobalWafers inked a 10-year agreement to supply Micron, gaining a US$500 million prepayment, and is now in talks with multiple clients on long term agreements (LTAs). $Micron Tech(MU.US) $SK Hynix(SKHY.US) $SSNLF #GlobalWafers #ShinEtsu #SUMCO #semiconductors

Source: Dan Nystedt

AI server giant Wistron will invest an additional NT$13.5 billion in new plants and equipment to further boost production this year amid strong demand for Nvidia GB300 and Vera Rubin based AI servers, media report, citing top executives at Wistron’s Q2 conference.

Source: Dan Nystedt

Prices for the production of older chips (mature processes) will rise even higher next year than this amid strong AI-related demand, media report, citing Taiwan chip foundries. Vanguard (VIS) said 2027 prices will outpace this year due to AI, and UMC and Powerchip (PSMC) both said they too would continue raising prices. VIS Chairman Leuh Fang said AI is driving strong demand for power management chips (PMICs) and discretes, and the shortage will run into 2027. $United Microelectronics(UMC.US) #VIS #PSMC #semiconductors

Source: Dan Nystedt

Nanya Technology, Taiwan’s biggest DRAM memory chip maker, said July revenue rose 719.6% year-on-year to NT$43.87 billion, also up 49.3% over June’s NT$29.39 billion on hot demand for memory chips used in AI servers. January through July revenue hit NT$175.5 billion, up 660.9%. Market estimates put DRAM prices up 60% in the 2nd quarter over the 1st, while bit shipments were flat. $Micron Tech(MU.US) $SK Hynix(SKHY.US) $SSNLF

Source: Dan Nystedt

Ibiden Q1: BEAT AND RAISE 🔥

Source: Chips & Wafers

Sony’s talks with TSMC over joint venture development of image sensor production lines at Sony's new fab in Koshi City, Japan (Kumamoto) “are progressing smoothly with a view to signing definitive agreements,” Sony said, adding it has already set aside ¥10 billion yen for the JV, in which it will be the majority shareholder. Sony is partnering with TSMC for its “world class semiconductor process technology” to boost future image sensors not just in mobile, but also physical AI (autos, robotics). $Taiwan Semiconductor(TSM.US) $Sony(SONY.US) #semiconductors

Source: Dan Nystedt

Prices of consumer graphics cards are up 30% over the past week in China, with buyers diving in to avoid paying more later, media report. At the world’s biggest wholesale market for graphics cards in Shenzhen, prices of popular cards have gone up the most: Nvidia RTX 5060 hit 3,100 yuan (US$460), up from 2,500 yuan four days ago; Nvidia RTX 5080 over 11,000 yuan ($1,630), up 1,700 yuan vs early July. Taiwan graphics card makers Asustek, MSI, Gigabyte are seen benefitting, as well as China’s Colorful.

Source: Dan Nystedt