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Monday 26 May 2025
China's export controls on advanced equipment disrupt global manufacturing expansion
As geopolitical tensions continue to reshape global supply chains, manufacturers expanding production overseas are facing fresh hurdles due to China's tighter export controls on advanced equipment and materials. While the impact on production capacity remains limited for now, sources say these measures are causing delays in setting up new manufacturing lines abroad, prompting companies to turn to local suppliers for critical support
Monday 26 May 2025
China eases rare earth curbs, drone makers to resume shipments
China has quietly relaxed export restrictions on rare earth elements crucial for drone manufacturing after the controls threatened to derail the industry's growth, according to people familiar with the matter. The move comes as both Beijing and Washington face mounting pressure from material shortages and stockpile risks
Monday 26 May 2025
QPC plans major transformation in 2025 with 75% of products exported
Qualipoly Chemical Corporation (QPC) announced that 2025 will be a year of significant transformation. The Annan plant is expected to begin trial production and ramp up operations in the third quarter, while the Yong'an plant is currently investing in building large-scale electronic chemical material reactors and planning subsequent capacity expansions. Additional ongoing projects include expanding PSMA production capacity and constructing automated warehousing facilities
Monday 26 May 2025
Nvidia reportedly develops new lower-cost AI chip for China to skirt US export curbs
Nvidia is reportedly developing another lower-cost AI chip for China, pricing it at US$6,500–8,000—well below its restricted H20 model. The new GPU, based on Blackwell architecture, is designed to comply with US export rules as Nvidia seeks to defend its market share amid tightening trade controls
Monday 26 May 2025
Trump's 25% tariff threat can't kill made-in-India's phone manufacturing edge
US President Donald Trump has renewed his push to bring manufacturing back to American soil, this time by threatening a 25% tariff on smartphones assembled outside the US. Initially aimed at Apple, Trump later clarified that the proposed tariff would apply more broadly to include companies like Samsung, emphasizing the need for fairness. He noted that the new import duties would be ready by the end of June 2025
Monday 26 May 2025
Samsung Galaxy phone prices could surge by 40% due to 25% tariff
Starting June 2025, Samsung Galaxy smartphones exported to the US may be subject to a 25% import tariff, a move that could push retail prices up by as much as 40%, according to South Korean media reports. The tariffs are part of a broader trade policy push by US President Donald Trump aimed at reshoring tech manufacturing
Monday 26 May 2025
Weekly news roundup: Huawei's 5G lead, DeepSeek's LLM moves, and TSMC's packaging gap
These are the most-read DIGITIMES Asia stories from the week of May 19 – May 25. Highlights include China's accelerating push for tech self-sufficiency with new AI chips and operating systems, TSMC's global fab and packaging expansion gaps, Wolfspeed's looming bankruptcy amid China's SiC surge, and Huawei's growing dominance in 5G infrastructure as Western RAN giants retreat. From Computex showdowns to DeepSeek's LLM momentum, here's what topped the headlines
Monday 26 May 2025
Xiaomi enters 3nm race, but Lei Jun says it's no Apple showdown
Xiaomi has launched its first self-designed 3nm system-on-chip, the XRing O1, positioning it as the cornerstone of a broader push into advanced semiconductors. Debuting inside both the Xiaomi 15S Pro smartphone and the Xiaomi Pad 7 Ultra tablet, the chip anchors the company's latest hardware rollout. CEO Lei Jun also introduced the XRing T1, Xiaomi's inaugural smartwatch chip, which incorporates the brand's first in-house 4G baseband processor
Monday 26 May 2025
BYD topples Tesla in Europe— signals changing of the guard in EV race
China's EV giant BYD has overtaken Tesla in monthly sales across Europe for the first time, marking a pivotal shift in the region's automotive landscape and highlighting the growing clout of Chinese automakers on the global stage
Monday 26 May 2025
Xiaomi takes aim at MediaTek with 3nm XRing O1 breakthrough

Xiaomi's launch of the XRing O1 at its "New Starting Point" event in Beijing marked more than just a new chip release—it was a direct challenge to industry giants Apple, Qualcomm, and MediaTek. Backed by over CNY13.5 billion (approx. US$1.87 billion) in R&D across four years, the XRing O1 is Xiaomi's first successful flagship SoC since the ill-fated Surge S1, signaling a serious shift in the company's silicon ambitions, as ICsmart and Reuters report

Monday 26 May 2025
India roundup: Taiwan-India silicon ties and the global chip chessboard
Taiwan and India are deepening their industrial ties as Foxconn, Inventec, Phison, and Sino-American Silicon expand their India investments; however, TSMC had previously turned down India's offer to set up a wafer fab there
Monday 26 May 2025
Vietnam rising: Meiko fuels Apple’s decoupling with $351m expansion
Japanese PCB maker Meiko is ramping up its capex to JPY51 billion (US$351 million) for the fiscal year ending March 2026—a 70% increase from its earlier plan—as it accelerates efforts to diversify production away from China, particularly to meet the needs of a key smartphone client widely believed to be Apple
Friday 23 May 2025
Luxshare makes Suzhou epicenter of its US$4.2B push into acoustics, robotics, and wearable tech

Following a high-profile signing in February, Luxshare Precision has launched the next phase of its major project in Kunshan, Suzhou. According to the official WeChat account "Kunshan Release" on May 20, the company's Phase I acoustic industry facility at Luxshare Science Park in Jinxi Town has commenced production, with construction on Phase II now underway

Friday 23 May 2025
China's XPeng levels up: 1Q25 glow-up fuels AI mobility, global ascent
XPeng is bucking the slowdown in global electric vehicle (EV) demand by rebranding itself as an AI-driven smart mobility platform. The Chinese automaker is pivoting from traditional car manufacturing to focus on AI-powered vehicles, international growth, and humanoid robotics as part of its long-term transformation strategy
Friday 23 May 2025
XPeng rewrites mobility script with AI chips, robot pilots, and LiDAR-free autonomy
As AI foundation models embed deeper into vehicle system architecture, China's XPeng Motors is shifting from conventional car manufacturing to a full-stack AI mobility platform. Its strategy now revolves around three core pillars: large-scale automotive foundation models, in-house AI chips, and humanoid robots—laying the groundwork for the next decade of intelligent transportation
Research Report Database
Intel signals overhaul of IDM 2.0 and foundry strategy with Lip-Bu Tan's appointment, says DIGITIMES