As Tesla lays off almost its entire team for charging business and slows charging station deployment, its competitors are poised to grow their market share and lure talents who left the company.

A space industry veteran is spearheading Taiwan's homegrown rocket and satellite ambitions, navigating a complex web of geopolitics and technical challenges.

In 2000, Bill Gates visited Taiwan for the World Congress of Information Technology (WCIT), and in 2009, Steve Ballmer, the second president of Microsoft, visited Taiwan only for one day. These were the only two times that the CEOs of Microsoft visited Taiwan.

How does an aerospace juggernaut redefine its horizons? Aerospace Industrial Development Corporation (AIDC) has taken a bold step into energy solutions, capitalizing on the parallels between aircraft propulsion and power generation.

SMIC released its first-quarter financial report for 2024, with revenue performance showing a year-on-year increase of 19.7% to $1.75 billion, slightly better than market expectations and comparable to UMC. It also indicated continuous growth in shipment volume and a capacity utilization rate of 80.8%, higher than 76.8% in the fourth quarter of 2023 and 68.1% in the first quarter of 2023, showcasing a significant improvement.

N Chandrasekaran, Tata Sons chairman, will assume the role of chairman of Tata Electronics, highlighting Tata's determination to enter the semiconductor industry as the group forays into semiconductors, EVs, and iPhone manufacturing amid India's ambition to develop a local high-tech ecosystem.

Samsung Electro-Mechanics (Semco) is reportedly expediting the development of its semiconductor packaging-use Glass Core Substrate (GCS) business by advancing the construction of a glass substrate trial production line by one quarter, aiming to stay competitive in the semiconductor materials market.

The US is poised to take a tough stance on China's clean energy products. The Biden administration reportedly will soon announce new tariffs on China-made EVs, solar goods, and other products, with EVs likely seeing their levy quadruple.

The explosive growth in Generative AI (GenAI) business opportunities spurred by ChatGPT drives the demand for hardware and software related to the GenAI supply chain. TSMC, the sole supplier of AI chips for Nvidia and other vendors, is also bolstering its supply chain partners with recent capacity expansions.

Zhen Ding expects robust growth in AI server-related products and a 3-4x increase in ABF substrate revenue in 2024.

Since the commercial operation launch of China's 5G communication system in October 2019, the number of 5G mobile users in China has exceeded 800 million. The monthly shipment proportion of 5G smartphones has also increased to over 80%, becoming the mainstream specification in the market.

An Indian startup is commercializing globally significant Gallium Nitride (GaN) semiconductor technology with applications in wireless transmitters and 5G networks.

KPMG Taiwan released the latest Global Venture Capital Analysis report on May 9, saying that Artificial Intelligence (AI) startups are the apple in the eyes of venture capitalists worldwide.

Taiwan's entry into space exploration reached a historic milestone with the successful deployment of Triton, its first domestically developed meteorological satellite, in 2023. This achievement signifies Taiwan's technological prowess and paves the way for groundbreaking advancements in meteorological forecasting capabilities.

These are the most-read DIGITIMES Asia stories in the week of May 6 – May 10.

Boston Dynamics, hailed as the pioneer of humanoid robots, recently announced that Atlas, its most iconic robot, would be retiring after a decade of development. However, shortly after, it announced the launch of an electric version of Atlas.

In a landmark move shaking the satellite communications market, SES, the Luxembourg medium-Earth orbit (MEO) satellite operator, and Intelsat, the Geosynchronous Orbit (GSO) satellite operator, have announced their merger. SES is set to acquire Intelsat in a staggering US$3.1 billion deal, marking the third major consolidation in the satellite industry following Viasat's acquisition of UK-based Inmarsat Group Holdings and Eutelsat's merger with OneWeb.

Japan's Rohm Semiconductor is seeking to strengthen business integration with the recently delisted Toshiba, particularly in power semiconductors.

China's homegrown car companies attracted the automotive industry's attention at the 2024 Beijing Auto Show last week, while global automakers gathered at the site.

According to a corporate filing to the Shanghai Exchange, MG Motor, a subsidiary of SAIC, plans to introduce investors such as JSW Ventures Singapore Pte. Limited (referred to as JSW Singapore) through equity transfer and capital increase for expansion.

Lam Research is expanding its investments to help India grow a chipmaking ecosystem. India-based Mindgroove Technologies introduced a RISC-V SoC to meet local demands.

Smartphone shipments to China went down over 10% sequentially in the first quarter of 2024 and are expected to stay at almost at the same level in the second quarter.

TSMC reported consolidated net revenue of over NT$236 billion (US$7.3 billion) in April 2024 while Apple's iPhone deliveries slowed and the company still experiences the aftereffects of a strong earthquake in Taiwan on April 3.

President Joe Biden's administration is poised to unveil a sweeping decision on China tariffs as soon as next week, one that's expected to target key strategic sectors while rejecting the across-the-board hikes sought by Donald Trump, people familiar with the matter said.

Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp. expects its average selling price to fall this quarter as chipmakers increase capacity, raising the alarm about growing price competition in the global market.

Market research firm DSCC recently stated that for Apple's OLED iPad launched in 2024, LG Display (LGD) is expected to account for over 65% of the panel shipments, ahead of Samsung Display (SDC). Observers in the South Korean industry have raised concerns about Apple issuing rather harsh requirements, suspecting that Apple may be attempting to shift the "responsibility" of weak sales and shipments onto the South Korean panel manufacturers

The US will triple its domestic semiconductor manufacturing capacity from 2022—when the CHIPS and Science Act (CHIPS) was enacted—to 2032. The projected 203% growth is the largest projected percent increase in the world over that time, according to a recent SIA report.

There are rumors that Apple attempted to transfer supplier technology to Chinese companies to lower the supply prices of key components.

In a recent move aimed at bolstering national security measures, the US Commerce Department's Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) has added 37 People's Republic of China (PRC) entities to the Entity List under the Export Administration Regulations (EAR). What is noteworthy is that quantum technology is specifically mentioned for 22 newly added to the Entity List.

Panasonic Group reported a record-high net income for the fiscal year ending in March 2024. Its battery business received significant tax credits from the US Inflation Reduction Act (IRA).

DIGITIMES Research has found that smartphone application processor (AP) shipments to China-based brands in the first quarter of 2024 bucked the seasonal trend with a sequential increase of 9%, driven by stronger-than-expected sales for the Chinese handset

Compared to TSMC, Samsung Electronics, and even Intel Foundry, which have moved into sub-7nm advanced processes, GlobalFoundries (GF), which announced in August 2018 that it would indefinitely shelve its sub-7nm development, still has a chance to enter the AI market pie. Is there still a chance for GF to get a piece of the AI market pie?

As financial reports unveil, industry heavyweights Amazon, Alphabet, Microsoft, and Meta are pouring significant resources into AI infrastructure.

Japan's semiconductor foundry startup Rapidus, now on a mission to mass produce 2nm chips by 2027, is developing advanced packaging and chiplet technologies, with a particular focus on interposer technology crucial for connecting chips with substrates. However, Rapidus is also tackling the challenge of improving production yield to win more advanced-packaging customers.

Micron Technology has announced the availability of the Crucial series LPCAMM2, an innovative form factor for next-generation notebook memory that incorporates LPDDR5X mobile memory to enhance the performance of notebooks intended for professionals and creators.

In the first quarter of 2024, Samsung Electronics reclaimed the top spot in smartphone shipments in the global market.

China's smartphone industry shipped a total of close to 160 million smartphones worldwide in the first quarter of 2024 and will see the volumes climb up further in the second quarter.

According to SMIC's financial results, it reported rising sales in the first quarter but saw worsening profits due to intensifying competition in China, particularly in commoditized products like DDI and CIS. SMIC reiterated its commitment to build fabs, with depreciation pressures expected to mount further.

Even with the slow recovery in the PC market, continued healthy demand for motherboards and the AI server trend have helped Asus and Gigabyte maintain revenue growth into April 2024, with Gigabyte, in particular, seeing single-month revenue reach a record high in April.

Backend house ChipMOS Technologies has made upward revisions to its capex for the second half of 2024 in response to strong demand for high-end Display Driver ICs (DDI), according to the company.

Taiwan-Asia Semiconductor Corporation (TASC), in its transition from optoelectronic sensing, reported a post-tax loss of NT$38 million in the first quarter of 2024.

The US-China trade relationship will likely exacerbate as the US might take "extreme action" on Chinese-made connected cars. The Biden administration is also considering new tariffs on several sectors China dominates, including EVs.

Lam Research announced a plan to include India-based suppliers in the global semiconductor equipment ecosystem, the second move by the company in less than a month to develop a chipmaking ecosystem in India.

In the realm of "decarbonization"-spawned green business opportunities, the spotlight shines brightly on low-carbon hydrogen, an arena deemed indispensable in the medium to long term. Taiwan has earmarked hydrogen energy as one of the twelve pivotal strategies for its transformative journey towards net-zero emissions.

Yung-chung Kao, the chairperson of compound semiconductor manufacturer IntelliEPI, expressed that the market for Gallium antimonide (GaSb) wafers is rapidly expanding.

As an exclusive ODM supplier for AMD's desktop chipsets, ASMedia Technology saw inventory turnover boost its gross margin to 59% in the first quarter of 2024, a marked improvement of 6% over 2023. Net income after tax in the first quarter increased sequentially by 31% to NT$886 million (US$27.3 million), marking a 10-quarter high, and a year-on-year improvement of 127%, while earnings per share stood at NT$12.8.

Apple has unveiled its new iPad products. Besides OLED panels, the M4 chip featured in the new iPad Pro series was the biggest surprise reveal. In particular, Apple dedicated much of its presentation to introducing the Neural Engine, claiming it to be the best Neural Processing Unit (NPU) among all current AI PC chips.

Magna International's Austrian plant is experiencing a double hit resulting from the sluggish EV demand. An EV startup customer has filed for bankruptcy, and orders from legacy automakers lack a driving force.

India saw an 8% increase year-on-year in smartphone shipments in the first quarter, fueled by healthy inventory levels and a push toward premium models. Vivo took the lead with an 18% surge in shipments, becoming the top player in India.

Display Driver IC (DDI) specialist Raydium Semiconductor expects to post slight revenue growth in the second quarter of 2024, thanks to a pick-up in demand for large-size DDIs.