Chips and Wafers’ Lover
A little under 2 years ago, we joined X with a simple goal: share what we were learning with the semiconductor community on @X, and hopefully add something useful to the conversation.
Today, we crossed 10,000 followers.We’re incredibly grateful to everyone who read, shared, challenged, supported, and helped us get here.Thank you all❤️ — onward.Source: Chips & Wafers
Applied Materials, the US’s biggest chip equipment maker, plans to invest $5 billion in India over the next decade, including in a 140-acre advanced semiconductor research park with cleanroom, media report, adding it will double its India R&D workforce. $Applied Materials(AMAT.US) #India #semiconductors
Source: Dan Nystedt
TSMC plans to build three fabs for sub-1.4nm and tinier chip manufacturing in Longtan, north Taiwan, with the first to be ready for mass production by 2030, media report, adding the investment is seen at over NT$1 trillion (US$31.4B). The report cites unnamed industry sources. The science park expansion plan approved by the National Development Council (NDC) marks a return to Longtan for TSMC, which abandoned the area in 2023 amid protests. The NDC’s okay is just the first of several steps for project. $Taiwan Semiconductor(TSM.US) #semiconductors
Source: Dan Nystedt
Taiwan electricity rates for heavy users like the semiconductor industry are expected to remain unchanged after a meeting this Friday to determine new pricing at state-run Taipower, media report, adding the government’s goal is to stabilize electricity prices. Longer term, the rate committee must decide to take a gradual approach to price increases or freeze rates. $Taiwan Semiconductor(TSM.US) #semiconductors
Source: Dan Nystedt
Winbond agreed to buy Infineon’s NOR Flash and F-RAM business in an all-cash deal valued at US$1.12 billion (NT$35.6B), Infineon said, adding the business serves customers across automotive, industrial and infrastructure markets. The deal is targeted to close in the 2nd half of 2027. Winbond plans to bring back the “Spansion” brand name for NOR Flash. The deal is set to make Winbond the biggest NOR Flash maker in the world, with around 30% market share. $IFFNY 2344
Source: Dan Nystedt
MediaTek launched its latest flagship smartphone chips, media report:
-Dimensity 9600 Pro, built on TSMC’s 2nm process, for high-end smartphones-Dimensity 9600, on TSMC’s 3nm process, for standard modelsThe Pro version was redesigned from the ground up with TSMC to boost performance and focus on agentic AI. $Taiwan Semiconductor(TSM.US) #mediatekSource: Dan Nystedt
Taiwan’s economic growth could hit 12% this year amid booming AI-related business by TSMC and Taiwan’s big AI server makers, said National Development Council Minister Chun-Hsien Yeh, adding order visibility extends through 2027. The government’s current official economic growth forecast is 11.05% for 2026. $Taiwan Semiconductor(TSM.US) #Foxconn #Quanta #Wistron #Wiwynn #Inventec #Gigabyte
Source: Dan Nystedt
MONSTROUS MONTH FROM TAIWANESE SERVER ODM'S📈📈
$34.7B, ATH+117% YoY+27% MoM+80% YTDSource: Chips & Wafers
Shortages continue for TSMC’s top production processes, 3nm and 2nm, and CoWoS advanced packaging, media report, mostly locked up by Nvidia and Apple. Amazon AWS has won more 3nm capacity recently, while MediaTek continues to seek more 2nm/3nm capacity and CoWoS-S/L packaging for smartphone chips and Google TPUs.
MediaTek is said to be on the short end of capacity allocation from TSMC due to Google’s TPU v9, which will split packaging orders between TSMC's CoWoS-L and Intel's EMIB-T. The MediaTek-assisted 3nm TPU v8t is to enter mass production in the 4th quarter and scale up further in 2027AWS continues to scale up orders for next-gen chips, boosted by partnerships with Alchip, Marvell, Qualcomm.Apple is now TSMC’s chief 2nm customer, for A20 Pro chips used in premium iPhones. Nvidia is the primary 3nm client.TSMC’s 2nm capacity will hit 100,000 wafers-per-month (wpm) by late October, with 50,000 each at Fab 20 in Hsinchu and Fab 22 in Kaohsiung.3nm capacity will reach 185,000wpm by late October.Overflow orders for advanced packaging are mostly expected to go to SiliconWare Precision, part of the ASE Group $Taiwan Semiconductor(TSM.US) $Alphabet(GOOGL.US) $Amazon(AMZN.US) $NVIDIA(NVDA.US) $Apple(AAPL.US) $Advanced Semiconductor Engineering(ASX.US)Source: Dan Nystedt
An executive from Murata Manufacturing, the world’s biggest maker of MLCCs (Multilayer Ceramic Capacitors), said demand growth for MLCCs used in AI servers will continue at least through 2028, media report, adding Murata plans to invest ¥80 billion (US$520 million) over 2-years to expand MLCC capacity by more than 20%. The company is also reviewing a more aggressive 2nd wave of expansion, including larger plants in Japan and overseas.
Source: Dan Nystedt
TSMC could create a new “Moore’s Law for CPO,” doubling bandwidth every two years as it accelerates the rollout of co-packaged optics (CPO) to meet the soaring bandwidth requirements of AI data centers, according to a media report.
TSMC will focus on three areas to scale CPO:• Per-lane speed: Increase single-channel speeds from 200G today to 400G and beyond• Optical channel density: Expand channel counts from 16 today to 32, then 64 and beyond• WDM (wavelength-division multiplexing): Enable each optical fiber to carry more wavelengths simultaneouslyThe report forecasts that doubling bandwidth every two years could take CPO bandwidth from a 3.2T baseline today to around 410T by 2040 – 128x higher. $Taiwan Semiconductor(TSM.US)Source: Dan Nystedt
Failure to comply with US regulations could see Taiwan firms banned from its supply chains over China-made components, a problem that recently put Unimicron at the center of a Taiwan investigation, media report. The tech giant has been accused of putting ‘Made-in-Taiwan’ labels on some printed circuit boards from its China factories. Taiwan firms have long had supply chains in China, but US tariffs and supply chain regulations have caused changes. The report says Taiwan customs caught 428 violations of the rules as of the end of August, up from 168 at the same time last year, a big increase but mainly due to stricter enforcement.
Source: Dan Nystedt
TSMC 2nm and 3nm capacity expansion shows why revenue will hit new record highs in 2027, media report:
- 2nm capacity to rise 22% to 110,000 wafers per month (wpm) by mid-2027, from 90,000 at end-2026- 3nm capacity will rise ~70% to 210,000wpm by mid-2027 vs end-2025: 2026-end: 180,000wpm 2025-end: 120,000 – 130,000wpm$Taiwan Semiconductor(TSM.US) $NVIDIA(NVDA.US) $Alphabet(GOOGL.US) $Apple(AAPL.US) #semiconductorsSource: Dan Nystedt
TSMC’s fabs in the Nanzih District of Kaohsiung City turned the area into one of the hottest property markets in Taiwan, but worries surfaced after no new residential building projects were launched during the “928” sales season, media report, noting that over the past 2-years, the value of new projects exceeded NT$10 billion. Builders are holding off on new projects as they sell existing inventory, while media note purchases have fallen 90% in 2026 to 197 presale homes, from a 2024 peak of 2,098. Prices continue to hold up, for now. $Taiwan Semiconductor(TSM.US)
Source: Dan Nystedt
Apple’s iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max will be the first products in the hands of consumers with chips made on TSMC’s 2nm process inside, media report, adding Apple’s A20 Pro chip went into mass production in early 2026. Apple has been first to market with chips made by the latest TSMC technology for at least a decade. $Apple(AAPL.US) $Taiwan Semiconductor(TSM.US) #iPhone18Pro #A20Pro
Source: Dan Nystedt
Google recovers its costs on TPUs in 1-year, while its overall payback period for AI servers is 2-years, media report, citing Google Cloud CEO Thomas Kurian, and adding that Google TPUs have found new customers across financial, biotech, government and scientific sectors in addition to AI labs. TPU strength is a boon to Broadcom and MediaTek, which both see their competition for Google’s chip design business as big enough for everyone to keep growing, even if new design rivals enter the market. $Broadcom(AVGO.US) $Alphabet(GOOGL.US) $NVIDIA(NVDA.US) #mediatek #semiconductors
Source: Dan Nystedt
The global IC substrate market will rise 32.3% year-on-year to US$19.51 billion in 2026 due to strong AI-related demand, media report, citing the Taiwan Printed Circuit Board Association. Last year, the market rose 18.5% to $14.75 billion, led by ABF substrates, vital for the GPUs inside AI servers, at $7.72 billion and BT substrates at $7.03 billion. #semiconductors #substrates
Source: Dan Nystedt
Amazon and Taiwan’s Wiwynn will invest US$1.6 billion to expand Wiwynn’s AI server plant in Texas to strengthen its supply chain and boost AI server output, media report. The US will account for 20% of Wiwynn’s global output next year, compared to current capacity: 70% in Mexico, 20% in Malaysia and 10% in Europe.
Wiwynn plans to spend US$942 million (NT$29.8B) in the 2nd half of 2026 on capex, up from NT$12.1 billion in the 1st half of the year, CFO Harry Chen said. Capex will be even higher next year, with new facilities planned for Taiwan and Malaysia. $Amazon(AMZN.US) $Alphabet(GOOGL.US) $Meta Platforms(META.US) $Microsoft(MSFT.US) #serverSource: Dan Nystedt
Japan’s Murata plans to end production of certain MLCC (Multilayer Ceramic Capacitor) products for consumer, industrial and automotive products to focus on high-end markets like AI servers and advanced automotive electronics, media report, adding that customers will likely shift orders to other MLCC makers, like Taiwan’s Yageo, Walsin Tech, Holy Stone, Prosperity Dialectrics and others. Murate is the world’s biggest maker of MLCCs, parts used in all electronics to stabilize the flow of electricity.
Source: Dan Nystedt
MediaTek’s monthly revenue soared to a record high NT$64.2 billion (US$2.01B) in August, up 30.4% over July and 44.1% versus the same time last year, boosted by its custom ASIC chip design business and high-end smartphone chip sales, media report.
2nd best month: 2026 March NT$63.2 billion3rd: 2022 March NT$59.2 billion #semiconductors #mediatekSource: Dan Nystedt
Amkor raised its Arizona advanced packaging plant investment to $12 billion from $7 billion earlier, and $2 billion originally – a sign of how much demand has grown in a short time. Amkor said it already has customer commitments for the first phase of the plant, 33,000 sq. meters of space, and the new expansion will raise the total to 93,000 sq. meters. Construction of phase 2 of the plant is to start in late 2027 and finish by end-2029. $Amkor Tech(AMKR.US) #Arizona #semiconductors
Source: Dan Nystedt
Taiwan media have misinterpreted a speech by President Trump to mean big new tariffs are coming for semiconductors. They aren't.
His numbers were rhetorical – arguing what past presidents should have done, not a warning of what he's planning. He also indicated the tariffs had do to with Intel, which had "lost its way" and asked him for help, and framed the 10% stock deal as protection money.Here’s the text, and a link to the speech below:President Trump: "Intel. Intel is a good, really good company. But what happened is, stupid presidents allowed the chip business to leave our country and go to Taiwan. And, stupid. All they had to do is put tariffs on they wouldn't have left. In other words, Taiwan, if you're going to sell chips to America, you're going to got to pay 100%, got to pay 200%, 50%, anything and you wouldn't have had— But they didn't do that until I came along. And what happened is Intel became old and tired and got in trouble. And they came to see me. The head of Intel was a nice man actually, and he said, “Sir, I need your help.” And he said why, whatever it was. And I said, “Well, you came to the right place. I’m the only one that can help you…I said, here’s the deal. Give the United States of America 10% of Intel." Now, the thing was worth like $120 billion. You know, it lost its way, but it’s still worth a lot of money. I said, “Give the United States of America 10% of Intel and I’ll get this problem solved." He stood up immediately and said, “You have a deal.” And I said, “I should have asked for more.” [51:13]Source: Dan Nystedt
$Taiwan Semiconductor(TSM.US) August revenue hits another ATH:
+44% YoY+11% MoMSource: Chips & Wafers
TSMC’s revenue rose 53.3% year-on-year in August to a fresh record high NT$514.81 billion (US$16.09B), the 4th consecutive monthly high amid robust global AI-related demand.
The previous record was NT$467.58 billion in July.TSMC did not provide a US$ figure. The figure is based on its forex guidance for the 3rd quarter. 1/3 $Taiwan Semiconductor(TSM.US) $Apple(AAPL.US) $NVIDIA(NVDA.US) $AMD(AMD.US) $Broadcom(AVGO.US) $Qualcomm(QCOM.US) #semiconductors #semiconductorSource: Dan Nystedt
