Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) is making a bold pivot by guaranteeing a US$300 million loan for cloud startup Crusoe, signaling a shift from pure hardware competition to financial engineering in the AI chip market. The loan, arranged by Goldman Sachs, will allow Crusoe to purchase AMD AI accelerators — including the Instinct MI450 series — for installation in a new Ohio data center being built by Canadian firm 5C, backed by Brookfield.

Samsung Electronics has accelerated cleanroom construction at its Pyeongtaek Fab 5 (P5), pushing forward capacity expansion for high-bandwidth memory and advanced-node semiconductor production under its "Shell First" strategy.

Below are the most-read DIGITIMES stories from the week of February 16-22, 2026.

Powerchip Semiconductor Manufacturing Corp. (PSMC) is emerging as a central manufacturing partner in a new initiative to develop next-generation AI memory, marking a strategic shift for the Taiwanese foundry from mature-node contract manufacturing toward advanced 3D integration for artificial intelligence infrastructure.

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang's absence from India's AI Impact Summit and his appearance at a late-night engineer gathering in California have drawn attention to the chipmaker's strategic priorities amid intensifying competition over next-generation memory and artificial intelligence hardware.

In a dramatic escalation of global trade tensions, President Donald Trump abruptly raised his newly announced global tariff to 15% on Saturday, effective immediately.

India's semiconductor drive is advancing unevenly, with quicker momentum in packaging and testing but mounting timeline risks in wafer fabrication, underscoring both progress and structural gaps as New Delhi seeks a larger role in global chip supply chains.

SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won recently traveled to the US for a series of high-level meetings with CEOs from Nvidia, Broadcom, Microsoft, Meta, and Google. The strategic focus extends beyond expanding high-bandwidth memory (HBM) sales; it aims for a head start in the design phase collaboration for next-generation AI chips, aiming to capture key leadership in future AI accelerator architectures.

On February 19, India formally joined the US-led Pax Silica coalition at the India AI Impact Summit 2026, signalling closer strategic cooperation with Washington on semiconductors, critical minerals, and artificial intelligence supply chains.