Semiconductors

About 1,700 people are expected to work at a new plant being built by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing in the town of Kikuyo in southwestern Japan, pictured in June. (Photos by Shinya Sawai)
Economy

TSMC set to revitalize small farming town in Japan

Local economy gets shot in arm from population boost, new business opportunities

29 June 2022
A Samsung chipmaking plant. Adopting homegrown materials would require suspending production lines. (Photo courtesy of Samsung Electronics)
Semiconductors

South Korea struggles to decouple from Japan in key chipmaking materials

Three years after Tokyo imposed export controls, reliance continues

28 June 2022
Taiwanese company GlobalWafers aims to open a plant for 300-mm chip wafers in the U.S. state of Texas as soon as 2025. 
Semiconductors

GlobalWafers to build $5bn U.S. plant after Siltronic bid fails

Washington scores major win for forging chip supply chain onshore

28 June 2022
Stream article image
#techAsia

Chinese memory chip king's rapid growth, Musk's China challenges

The inside story on the Asia tech trends that matter, from Nikkei Asia and the Financial Times

24 June 2022
GlobalFoundries CEO Tom Caulfield says demand for the chips his company makes will continue to outstrip capacity to the extent that "we'll be investing for the better part of the next decade." (Source photos by GlobalFoundries)
Semiconductors

GlobalFoundries to decide on further investments by end of year

U.S. chipmaker will 'continue to chase capacity,' CEO Tom Caulfield says

24 June 2022
SoftBank Group CEO Masayoshi Son focused on Arm, the world's dominant provider of semiconductor designs, during the company's annual general meeting of shareholders on June 24. (Screenshot from SBG Youtube)
SoftBank

SoftBank's Son 'studying' Arm's London IPO but US remains favorite

Chairman bets on blockbuster listing after record Vision Fund losses

24 June 2022
Nanya Technology executives break ground on the company's $10 billion chip plant in New Taipei City. (Photo by Cheng Ting-Fang)
Semiconductors

Taiwan top memory chipmaker sees demand slowdown spreading

Nanya Technology flags revenue decline as cloud computing, data center orders weaken

23 June 2022
China's Yangtze Memory Technologies has seen its global market share in the NAND flash memory market take off from 1.3% in 2019 to around 4.8% in 2021.
Semiconductors

China's Yangtze Memory takes on rivals with new chip plant

Company aims to close technology gap with players like Samsung, Micron

23 June 2022
India has big ambitions in the global semiconductor industry. (Source photo by AP)
Semiconductors

India touted as chip investment alternative amid regional risks

Tata executive says semiconductor industry needs country for growth

22 June 2022
Ajit Manocha, president and CEO of industry association SEMI, says that chipmakers are struggling to find replacements for essential raw materials purchased from Ukraine. (Photo by P Prem Kumar).
Semiconductors

Ukraine war to extend chip supply crunch: semiconductor group

SEMI CEO says conflict choking off supply of key raw materials to manufacturers

21 June 2022
Headphone-wearing revelers dance at a pre-pandemic "silent disco" event in Poland. 
Technology

New Japan audio tech packs sound of trillions and trillions of CDs

Asahi Kasei unit aims to bring streaming music quality closer to live performances

18 June 2022
The Taiwanese company and its Japanese partners could start receiving payments by the end of this year.
Semiconductors

Japan to subsidize TSMC's Kumamoto plant by up to $3.5bn

Backing to come from METI fund intended to strengthen domestic chip sector

17 June 2022
TSMC says its 2-nanometer tech will be based on "nanosheet transistor architecture" and deliver significant improvements in chip performance and power efficiency. (Photo by Shinya Sawai)
Semiconductors

TSMC says it will make ultra-advanced 2nm chips by 2025

Taiwanese titan joins Samsung and Intel in race for latest semiconductor tech

17 June 2022
Shortages and constraints are reaching into the most obscure corners of the global supply chain for electronic chips. (Source photos by Reuters, TSMC and AP) 
Business Spotlight

From chemicals to gases, chip suppliers reel as materials prices surge

Industry braces for 'more costly future' as shortages haunt supply chains

17 June 2022
Stream article image
#techAsia

E-bikes in Indonesia and stormy skies for China's cloud giants

The inside story on the Asia tech trends that matter, from Nikkei Asia and the Financial Times

16 June 2022
Sources say Samsung has told suppliers that the company needs to closely review its inventory levels of both components and final products. 
Supply Chain

Samsung temporarily reduces procurement amid inventory pressure

South Korean tech titan asks component makers and others to delay shipments

16 June 2022
Gourangalal Das is director-general of the India-Taipei Association, the South Asian country's de-facto embassy in Taipei. (Photo by Cheng Ting-Fang)
Supply Chain

India to pump $30bn into tech sector and chip supply chain

South Asia nation open to working with Taiwanese players to realize ambitions

16 June 2022
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. leads in developing mass production technology for 2-nm chips.
Semiconductors

Japan seeks to produce cutting-edge 2-nm chips as soon as 2025

In race with TSMC, Tokyo and Washington partner on R&D and manufacturing

15 June 2022
Work on TSMC's new plants continues late into the night and on holidays as the chipmaker rushes to bring more capacity online. (Photo by Yu Nakamura)
Semiconductors

What Taiwan risk? Island's chipmakers embark on $120bn buildup

20 new fabs ready or in pipeline, dwarfing planned investments in U.S. and Japan

14 June 2022
SK surpassed Hyundai Motor for the first time, accumulating total assets of 292 trillion won ($230 billion) -- a 22% increase from the previous year.
Companies

SK overtakes Hyundai to become South Korea's No. 2 conglomerate

Thriving chip business pushes automaker off position it held for 16 years

11 June 2022
U.S.-based Micron Technology makes chips at a Hiroshima plan formerly operated by Japan's Elpida Memory. (Photo by Ryosuke Eguchi)
Semiconductors

Micron to make cutting-edge '1-beta' memory chips in Japan this year

Hiroshima plant follows Taiwan as production base for advanced DRAM

11 June 2022
The British government aims to make the U.K. the most attractive place for innovative businesses to grow and raise capital.
SoftBank

U.K. dials up charm offensive to keep Arm listing in London

Brits risk losing valuable SoftBank-owned chip designer to Wall Street

11 June 2022
Stream article image
#techAsia

Supply chain stability and greener ride hailing

The inside story on the Asia tech trends that matter, from Nikkei Asia and the Financial Times

10 June 2022
Sumco will raise the price of silicon wafers by 30%, while materials producer Showa Denko raised the price of all high-purity gas by more than 20%. (Screenshot from company websites).
Semiconductors

Japan's Sumco, Showa Denko to hike chip material prices 20-30%

Cost pressures could mean higher car, appliance prices for consumers

8 June 2022
TSMC Chairman Mark Liu speaks during a livestream of the Taiwanese chipmaker's annual shareholders meeting on June 8. (Photo by Cheng Ting-Fang) 
Semiconductors

TSMC says U.S. plant construction 'more costly' than expected

Taiwan chip titan assures revenue to grow up to 30% in 2022 amid market slowdown

8 June 2022