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Thursday 21 August 2025
SJ Semiconductor advances 3D packaging as key Huawei partner, climbs global OSAT rankings
China's semiconductor packaging and testing firm SJ Semiconductor (SJ Semi) has made significant headway with the completion of its third production facility, J2C, in Jiangyin's high-tech zone, alongside the topping-out of a new R&D building. Industry executives say the milestone underscores tangible progress in expanding advanced packaging capacity, strengthening China's competitiveness in high-end outsourced semiconductor assembly and test (OSAT) services
Thursday 21 August 2025
South Korea denies US plans to acquire Samsung shares amid CHIPS Act speculation
The South Korean presidential office has dismissed reports that the US government intends to purchase shares of Samsung Electronics Co., stating there is no factual basis for such claims. The clarification follows widespread speculation fueled by recent comments from US officials
Thursday 21 August 2025
Analysis: Can Chinese EVs win over Taiwan? Safety, data, and supply chain remain key questions

Reports that Chinese automaker BYD may enter the Taiwanese market through indirect channels have sparked widespread debate, reflecting growing interest—alongside skepticism—toward Chinese electric vehicles (EVs). While some Taiwanese consumers are intrigued by the value proposition, many industry experts remain wary of potential safety and privacy risks

Thursday 21 August 2025
China LED firms hike prices up to 10%; Taiwan pivots to AI
China's LED industry is facing a new round of price hikes in 2025 as rising raw material costs squeeze margins. MLS Co., Ltd., Kinglight, and Syntec Technology led the move with increases of 5–10%, prompting peers to follow. Taiwanese manufacturers remain skeptical, citing weak end-market demand that makes higher prices difficult to sustain
Thursday 21 August 2025
Chinese firms enter advanced hybrid bonding race as global chipmakers accelerate
With Moore's Law losing momentum, advanced packaging has become the industry's next significant lever to drive performance gains. At the center of this race is hybrid bonding, widely seen as the next-generation interconnect. The technology is quickly transitioning from the lab to mass production, laying the groundwork for future advances in memory and high-bandwidth memory (HBM)
Thursday 21 August 2025
Executive shake-up at China’s top wafer maker

China's National Silicon Industry Group (NSIG), the country's biggest silicon wafer producer, said longtime executive Wang Qingyu, also known as Jeffrey Wang, has stepped down in a board rotation and will no longer hold any role at the company or its subsidiaries

Thursday 21 August 2025
Samsung could benefit from US approval of lower-spec Nvidia Blackwell chips for China

Industry analysts say Samsung could start supplying 12-layer HBM3E to Nvidia in the fourth quarter of 2025. But shipments for Nvidia's flagship Blackwell processors are projected to make up less than 10% of the total. SK Hynix and Micron have already won certification for 12-layer HBM3E and remain well ahead. Samsung cleared certification for its 8-layer version in the second quarter of 2025, roughly a year after SK Hynix, and is now trying to close the gap

Thursday 21 August 2025
European luxury car brands reeling as China tightens tax policy
As global automakers battle for dominance in an increasingly competitive Chinese market, European luxury brands are facing unprecedented headwinds. Beyond losing market share to fast-rising Chinese manufacturers, a newly implemented luxury tax policy by Beijing is compounding their struggles—threatening what many had viewed as their final stronghold in the world's largest auto market
Thursday 21 August 2025
China and South Korea clash over the future of EV batteries
As the global electric vehicle market begins to cool and Chinese battery giants continue their rapid expansion, South Korea is placing its hopes on next-generation solid-state batteries to regain momentum. Yet with China's formidable research and development resources — and a parallel strategy advancing semi-solid-state technologies — Korean manufacturers are facing mounting pressure in a high-stakes technological race
Wednesday 20 August 2025
PCB giant Zhen Ding plans US$1.1 billion expansion to support AI supply chain
Zhen Ding Technology, the world's largest printed circuit board (PCB) manufacturer, announced that its Chinese subsidiary, Avary Holding, has approved a major investment plan for its Huaian campus. The company will invest CNY8 billion (approximately US$1.1 billion) between the second half of 2025 and 2028 to expand high-end PCB production capacity, targeting the fast-growing demand driven by artificial intelligence applications
Wednesday 20 August 2025
Commentary: Who will lead GaN market after TSMC's 2027 exit?
Gallium nitride (GaN) semiconductors are on the brink of a major transformation. Once hailed as the rising star among third-generation semiconductors, this technology has fallen from grace due to intense price competition in the Chinese market. Now, with global GaN foundry leader TSMC announcing its withdrawal by mid-2027, the entire industry is entering an early era of fragmentation reminiscent of the Warring States period
Wednesday 20 August 2025
China signals openness to India's rare earth request amid tensions with US
Chinese Foreign Minister Yi Wang's recent visit to India marks a possible easing in China-India relations, with China reportedly agreeing to address India's requests for rare earths, fertilizers, and tunnel boring machines. Official announcements have yet to be made
Wednesday 20 August 2025
Commentary: CXMT targets HBM3 by 2026 as Trump redefines chip trade calculus

Like advanced AI processors, high-bandwidth memory (HBM) has been a target of US export curbs under former President Joe Biden. HBM capacity and bandwidth shape the speed and efficiency of AI training and inference. From Nvidia's H100 to the GB200, HBM capacity has grown 2.4 times and bandwidth 2.6 times. Despite that, China still lacks self-developed HBM and cutting-edge AI chips, which have been left exposed to Washington's pressure points

Wednesday 20 August 2025
Huawei turns to software to ease pain from China's scarce AI memory
The global race to build ever-larger AI models is intensifying, and the battle is no longer confined to Nvidia's powerful GPUs. Another crucial, though less visible, component has emerged as the bottleneck: high-bandwidth memory (HBM)
Wednesday 20 August 2025
OpenAI launches affordable ChatGPT subscription in India to encourage free users to upgrade
OpenAI has introduced a new subscription tier, ChatGPT Go, tailored specifically for the Indian market and priced at INR399 per month (about US$4.6). The move aims to boost paid subscriptions by offering a more affordable option compared to existing plans