Chinese AI developer Z.ai has completed a giant data center running exclusively on domestically made chips, a milestone in Beijing's drive to replace restricted Nvidia silicon for future AI development.
As the AI boom keeps memory shortages running hot, steep price hikes for smartphones in the second half of 2026 are coming into view. Global market researchers have issued increasingly bleak forecasts, warning that "chipflation" could last through 2027 and that surging memory prices are already lifting the cost of consumer devices.
South Korean semiconductor materials and parts supplier CMTX has developed a roughly 590mm single-crystal silicon ground ring for chip-etching equipment and plans to begin customer validation as it scales production of the 600mm-class ingots used to make oversized chamber components.
TSMC has announced an additional US$100 billion investment in the US on top of its existing US$165 billion commitment, expanding its Arizona footprint to 12 fabs and one R&D center. While the market has focused on the size of the spending, investors are more concerned that overseas expansion could squeeze profitability.
Taiwan prosecutors have indicted four former TSMC employees for allegedly stealing confidential semiconductor technology with the intent of transferring it to China, marking the island's first criminal prosecution involving "national core technologies" under the National Security Act. According to Nikkei Asia, the case highlights Taiwan's intensifying efforts to safeguard its semiconductor leadership amid growing competition from China.
