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Friday 18 July 2025
US approval of Nvidia AI chip exports to China more than meets eye

Washington has formally approved shipments of Nvidia's H20 artificial intelligence chips to China, a decision widely seen as a strategic compromise shaped by both geopolitical calculations and commercial realities.

Friday 18 July 2025
TSMC raises 2025 revenue forecast on AI demand despite macro headwinds
TSMC lifted its full-year revenue outlook in dollar terms during an earnings call, citing robust demand for high-performance computing chips driven by artificial intelligence (AI) applications. The world's largest contract chipmaker benefits from the ongoing AI surge even as multiple macroeconomic challenges persist.
Friday 18 July 2025
Pegatron chair hails Indonesia tariff cut, urges balance in US-China AI strategy
Pegatron Chairman T.H. Tung welcomed the sharp reduction in US tariffs on Indonesian exports to 19%—the lowest among Asian countries to date—as a timely boost for the company's newly ramped-up production facility in Batam. He noted that the cut offers Taiwanese companies with operations in Southeast Asia a stronger foothold in global tech competition.
Friday 18 July 2025
OpenAI diversifies cloud providers as AI compute demand outpaces supply
OpenAI has diversified its cloud infrastructure beyond Microsoft Corp. to include Google Cloud, CoreWeave Inc., and Oracle Corp., underscoring the intensifying competition for scarce AI computing resources that has left multiple providers reporting capacity constraints in early 2025.
Friday 18 July 2025
Nvidia's return to China faces trust deficit as domestic rivals gain ground
Nvidia announced at China's International Supply Chain Expo that its H20 chips received US government approval to resume sales in the world's second-largest economy, marking a pivotal moment for the semiconductor giant's efforts to regain lost ground in a critical market.
Friday 18 July 2025
China’s AI star disappears from home and quietly reemerges in Singapore
Once celebrated as China's most promising AI agent, Manus has plunged into uncertainty after abruptly shifting its headquarters to Singapore and erasing its digital footprint from Chinese platforms. The abrupt reversal marks a dramatic rise-and-fall arc in under 100 days.
Thursday 17 July 2025
Korea allocates US$31 million for physical AI as it seeks edge over the US, China
South Korea's Ministry of Science and ICT allocated KRW42.6 billion (approx. US$31 million) for physical AI proof-of-concept projects through a supplementary budget, representing the largest portion of the government's 179.3 billion won AI sector funding boost.
Thursday 17 July 2025
Section 232 tariffs risk jeopardizing US-Taiwan relations
Since taking office in January 2025, US President Donald Trump has launched a series of economic and trade policies aimed at achieving fair and reciprocal trade with foreign countries, reindustrializing the US, bringing supply chains to the US, and maintaining American leadership in AI.
Thursday 17 July 2025
From oil to algorithms: Nvidia's rise marks shift in global power structure
A major power shift is underway in the global industrial landscape. Once dominated by financial and energy giants, especially in the early 2000s, the world's top companies by market capitalization are now being overtaken by tech leaders. In particular, Nvidia's market cap surged past US$4 trillion, underscoring a broader shift in global economic leadership, from traditional industries and mobile-era tech to the disruptive forces of AI.
Thursday 17 July 2025
DeepSeek stumbles as user growth slows and R2 delay drags on; Nvidia H20 restart offers a lifeline
Once hailed as China's rising AI star, DeepSeek is now facing a period of waning momentum. However, the company's founder and CEO, Liang Wenfeng, might soon benefit from an expected restart in Nvidia's exports of H20 chips to China, potentially providing a crucial boost.
Thursday 17 July 2025
China accelerates RISC-V localization with new Shanghai research hub

China is ramping up its RISC-V ambitions with the launch of the Shanghai Open Source Computing Research Institute, unveiled at the 5th RISC-V Summit China on July 17, 2025. As the country's second key platform, following the Beijing Open Source Silicon Innovation Center, the institute aims to strengthen domestic innovation in open instruction set architecture (ISA) development.

Thursday 17 July 2025
Wistron pours US$45 million into California plant expansion, eyes closer ties with Nvidia
Wistron is ramping up its artificial intelligence efforts in the US, announcing a US$45 million investment to expand production at its California facility. The company's board approved the funding on July 16, 2025, which will be allocated to WisLab EMS Corporation, a wholly owned subsidiary of Wistron. The investment is intended to enhance the site's capacity for developing, testing, and manufacturing advanced AI servers.
Thursday 17 July 2025
Nvidia CEO disclaims US-China trade and export policy influence
During his July 16, 2025, visit to China, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang addressed questions about the US H20 chip ban and the US-China tech conflict. He said he had not changed his position on the restrictions but kept Washington updated on AI developments. Huang expressed optimism that both the US and China could lead in AI, highlighting the importance of international cooperation.
Thursday 17 July 2025
H20 back online in China — IC design houses, cloud AI chipmakers breathe sigh of relief
The Trump administration's decision to allow Nvidia's H20 chips back into China has triggered a surge of urgent orders from major Chinese cloud providers, reviving not only Nvidia's outlook but also lifting sentiment across the AI semiconductor ecosystem. Peripheral chipmakers, especially IC design firms, are seeing fresh demand and renewed confidence as the supply chain recalibrates.
Thursday 17 July 2025
South Korea pushes physical AI development with new industry association
South Korea's government is accelerating efforts to establish the country as a leading artificial intelligence power, with particular focus on physical AI - technology that combines robotics with advanced AI capabilities. The initiative represents part of President Lee Jae-myung's broader strategy to position South Korea among the world's top three AI nations.
Thursday 17 July 2025
H20 reenters China: lifeline for AI startups, blow to GPU sovereignty
Amid rising doubts over China's AI trajectory, two setbacks have rattled its startup ecosystem: Manus, the buzzed-about AI agent startup, is reportedly exiting the Chinese market, while DeepSeek R2 — a trillion-parameter large language model — is facing a critical GPU shortfall. Just as sentiment soured, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang made a high-profile appearance at the China International Supply Chain Expo in Beijing, where he announced the lifting of export restrictions on the China-specific H20 chip.
Thursday 17 July 2025
Nvidia's Jensen Huang discusses AI, China's tech influence, and personal tech preferences
During an extended Nvidia media briefing in China after the China International Supply Chain Expo, CEO Jensen Huang addressed US-China trade relations and China's rising tech influence. He emphasized China's strength in software and computer science, often overlooked compared to hardware. Huang cited companies like Xiaomi, Alibaba Group, and Tencent Holdings as leaders in blending advanced hardware with cutting-edge software.
Thursday 17 July 2025
Uncertainty still clouds H20 relaunch in China despite resumed sales, says Jensen Huang
On July 16, Nvidia founder and CEO Jensen Huang held a lengthy interview with over 30 Chinese media outlets in Beijing, addressing issues ranging from the recent resumption of H20 chip sales in China to Huawei's standing in the field of artificial intelligence (AI). The session, which lasted more than 90 minutes, saw Huang respond to over 50 questions without restrictions, covering market competition, supply chain logistics, and Nvidia's valuation exceeding US$4 trillion.
Thursday 17 July 2025
Huawei's AI chip expansion into SEA and the Middle East likely limited to sanctioned markets
Recent market rumors suggest that Huawei has begun supplying small quantities of its own AI chips to potential customers in Southeast Asia and the Middle East as a trial. Many observers believe this move is a strategic attempt by Huawei to expand its business after encountering bottlenecks in promoting its products within the Chinese market.
Thursday 17 July 2025
Taiwan's manufacturing faces new challenges and opportunities as supply chains shift and AI advances, says iKala CEO
Taiwan's manufacturing sector faces major challenges from tariff shifts, currency changes, and production relocations. At the Global Taiwanese Business Economic Forum on July 16, iKala CEO Sega Chang highlighted how China's shift from manufacturing to exporting software and services has reshaped competition for Taiwanese manufacturers.
Thursday 17 July 2025
Nvidia's H20 chips see surge in Chinese orders as Jensen Huang returns to Beijing
The China International Supply Chain Expo (CISCE) in Beijing, China, was held on July 16, 2025, with the attendance of Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang becoming the main attraction. During the event, he revealed that Nvidia has already received a large number of orders for its H20 AI chips.
Thursday 17 July 2025
Nvidia's Jensen Huang names 10 Chinese AI firms shaping the future — from Tencent to MiniMax

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang delivered a rare Mandarin-language keynote at the China International Supply Chain Expo on July 16, appearing in traditional Chinese attire. His presence underscored Nvidia's growing engagement with China's fast-evolving AI landscape.

Thursday 17 July 2025
iKala prepares for IPO, plans to file and list on innovation board in 2026
Taiwan-based iKala is preparing for an initial public offering (IPO), with plans to file for listing on Taiwan's innovation board in 2026. The company's co-founder and CEO, Sega Chang, announced the strategy at a recent event on July 16.
Thursday 17 July 2025
Adata surges on memory boom, eyes AI and Biotech for next growth wave
Taiwanese memory module maker Adata Technology reported after-tax profit of NT$462 million (US$15 million) in June 2025, marking a dramatic turnaround from a loss in the same month last year. The figure is nearly on par with the company's first-quarter earnings of NT$526 million, signaling continued momentum in 2025.
Thursday 17 July 2025
Can GlobalFoundries' MIPS move chip away at Arm's edge AI dominance?
While Intel's new CEO Lip-Bu Tan is still pondering how to find a path forward for its foundry business, US-based semiconductor foundry giant GlobalFoundries (GF) recently announced plans to acquire chip developer MIPS Technologies at an undisclosed price and enter the RISC-V processor market.