President Liang Chunyi: AEM Holdings is deeply engaged in chip testing and is laying out the future of artificial intelligence

90% of Revenue Relies on Intel, AEM Actively Expands New Opportunities

AEM possesses excellent core technology and outstanding employees, and Liang Chunyi joined AEM to further enhance the company's strength in new product development and international market expansion, leveraging her rich experience in these areas.

The local chip testing company AEM Holdings was mentioned in media reports regarding the government budget in February this year, when Prime Minister Huang Xuncai highlighted AEM as one of the promising companies in our country and emphasized the important role the company plays in the chip manufacturing process.

She also stated that the technology the company has been developing for many years aligns perfectly with future technologies such as artificial intelligence and advanced packaging. Therefore, the company will continue to invest in research and development, creating advanced technologies based on the future development trends of the semiconductor industry.

AEM Holdings President Liang Chunyi pointed out in an exclusive interview with Lianhe Zaobao that the 10% reciprocal tariff imposed by the United States on Singapore has little impact on AEM Holdings. The reason is that the chips tested by the company are shipped to various locations in Southeast Asia and are not exported to the United States.

She is also an advisor to the International Semiconductor Executive Summits and the Singapore Semiconductor Industry Association.

During the hour-long interview, whenever Liang Chunyi spoke about AEM's technology, her eyes sparkled with enthusiasm, and her face radiated pride, completely unreflective of her status as a new employee who had just joined the company for less than a year. (Special photography by Chen Fuzhou)

Liang Chunyi was born in Tianjin, China, and immigrated to the United States with her parents at the age of 16. She holds a bachelor's degree in chemical engineering from the University of California, Berkeley, and a master's degree in materials science and engineering from Stanford University.

The Prime Minister's brief introduction drew investors' attention to this technology company again, pushing the company's stock price to its highest point in a month, closing up 4.55% at SGD 1.61.

She said, "I have known AEM for many years and am aware of the company's development history. As an outsider, I have watched AEM grow alongside Intel. AEM is a flexible supplier that can collaborate with customers for the long term and expand into international markets, becoming a hot technology leader in the global testing industry, which is not an easy feat. I have long admired this team." Liang Chunyi said that the company is now focusing more on using new technologies and serving new customers. The company has production facilities in multiple locations in Southeast Asia and Europe, so it must ensure a smooth supply chain.

"The achievements we made last year are just the beginning of the whole journey, as artificial intelligence is on the rise and advanced packaging is also starting to develop. So I feel super optimistic about the future and excited about the achievements we might make in the coming years."

Vision of "Testing 2.0": Improve Production Yield and Reduce Testing Costs

Further Reading

Liang Chunyi used computers as an example, saying that the demand for the chip testing services provided by the company is measured by the number of chips tested and the duration of testing. If consumers reduce their purchases of personal computers due to a decline in confidence in the economy, the number of chips that manufacturers need to test will also decrease accordingly.

She smiled and said, "My performance cannot be perfect because if I think my performance is perfect, it means I am no longer growing."

Over Ten Years of Cooperation with Intel

In addition to potential weakness in the consumer market, the demand for chips in the enterprise sector may also face challenges. For example, China is a major customer of Nvidia and AMD chips, but if the U.S. government bans the export of advanced chips to China, the number of chips that need to be tested will also decrease, which will impact AEM's business.

She said, "I think the biggest uncertainty right now is the specific impact of these tariffs on demand, that is, the overall impact, whether on the semiconductor industry or the overall economy. No one can predict what will happen now, but the general consensus is that there may be negative business impacts in the short term, as for the long-term impact in the future, we are still observing."

"The semiconductor industry is expected to become a market worth trillions of yuan, with a significant portion of growth coming from artificial intelligence, and the technology we are currently developing, especially in thermal testing technology, is applicable to AI chip testing. So we are full of confidence and optimism."

However, the new U.S. tariff measures are expected to lead to a slowdown in Singapore's economic growth. If consumer purchasing power declines, the demand for electronic products may weaken, which in turn could affect the service demand for AEM Holdings, putting the company under certain pressure.

She pointed to the award plaque hanging on the conference room wall and said, "This is the Best Supplier Award we received. It proves the excellence of our team, who listen to customer needs and work closely with customers, which has become the core gene of the team. The reason I decided to join this company is precisely because of this team."

AEM has launched the "Testing 2.0" vision, aiming to fully improve chip production yield while reducing testing costs. This testing technology includes wafer probe, final test, burn-in, and system-level testing (SLT) Liang Chunyi joined AEM in the middle of last year, succeeding Chandran Nair, who resigned from the position of president. She has over 20 years of experience in the semiconductor industry, having held senior positions in the mergers and acquisitions department and the market and customer solutions department at FormFactor, a large semiconductor testing and measurement technology company in the United States.

She said, "In the short term, we will definitely see more headwinds and instability, as people lack confidence in purchasing more... But I believe that in the long run, the trend of artificial intelligence will not stop. The demand for advanced packaging supporting AI chip production will also not stop."

Regarding her efforts over the past year, she believes her performance is average, as the company must continuously push for development. In addition to continuing to provide good service to existing customers, it must also actively seek more new clients.

However, AEM successfully turned a loss into a profit last year and welcomed two new major clients. Just as the market began to believe that the company had finally turned a corner, the trade war initiated by the United States last month caused AEM's stock price to drop to 1 yuan at one point.

AEM's business performance has been somewhat weak in recent years, with its stock price continuously declining since reaching a peak of 5.20 yuan at the end of 2021. Last year, the company also faced a situation of insufficient inventory due to human error, leading to fluctuations in investor sentiment.

Tariffs, market demand, and export policies are all macroeconomic factors that AEM cannot control. In this situation, Liang Chunyi believes that the only thing the company can do is to "do its own part well," actively research and develop new technologies, and strive to expand its customer base.

Although she has never worked in Singapore, Liang Chunyi has been in the semiconductor industry for many years, and AEM has enjoyed a good reputation in the United States for many years, so she is very familiar with the company. During a one-hour interview, whenever she spoke about AEM's technology, her eyes sparkled with excitement, and her face was filled with pride, completely unlike a new employee who has just joined for a year.

The company focuses on enhancing thermal management, advanced automation, and testing tools based on application scenarios. Among them, the patented intelligent thermal management technology PiXL is AEM's flagship product.

For those unfamiliar with local tech stocks, AEM may just seem like a semiconductor company, and its stock price does not rise as sharply as bank stocks, nor is its brand as prominent as consumer tech companies. However, knowing that the American chip manufacturer Intel has entrusted AEM with testing its chips for over a decade before selling them may give a different perspective on the company.

Intel is AEM's largest client, accounting for about 90% of AEM's total revenue. However, the geopolitical situation can change at any time, and to survive in an uncertain macroeconomic environment, new business opportunities must be explored, and new clients must be attracted. AEM has thus set its sights on the AI chips that have seen a surge in demand in recent years