Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) has invited Taiwan Speciality Chemicals Corp (TSCC, 台特化), a supplier of chemical materials for semiconductors, to invest in the US in support of its production there, TSCC’s parent company said yesterday.
Doris Hsu (徐秀蘭), president of silicon wafer supplier Sino-American Silicon Products Inc (SAS, 中美晶), told reporters that TSCC had received an invitation from TSMC to set up support facilities for the chipmaker’s planned 12-inch wafer plant in Arizona, which is to make chips using the advanced 5-nanometer process.
TSCC, which produces specialty electronic-graded gases for semiconductor production, was recognized by TSMC in December last year as one of its outstanding suppliers.
TSCC is planning to build warehousing facilities in the US to support its major client, Hsu said at an annual general meeting of GlobalWafers Co (環球晶圓), a leading silicon wafer supplier in Taiwan where she serves as chairwoman.
TSMC chairman Mark Liu (劉德音) on June 9 told the company’s annual general meeting that the chipmaker was mulling the possibility of inviting its suppliers to set up factories close to its planned wafer plant in Arizona, but the plan had not yet been finalized.
The idea is to help TSMC win the trust of US customers, build an advantage in that market, and employ top global talent in the semiconductor industry, Liu said.
NEW JOBS
The wafer plant would have a monthly production capacity of 20,000 units and is expected to directly create 1,600 high-tech professional jobs and thousands of others in the semiconductor ecosystem, TSMC has said.
POWERING UP: PSUs for AI servers made up about 50% of Delta’s total server PSU revenue during the first three quarters of last year, the company said Power supply and electronic components maker Delta Electronics Inc (台達電) reported record-high revenue of NT$161.61 billion (US$5.11 billion) for last quarter and said it remains positive about this quarter. Last quarter’s figure was up 7.6 percent from the previous quarter and 41.51 percent higher than a year earlier, and largely in line with Yuanta Securities Investment Consulting Co’s (元大投顧) forecast of NT$160 billion. Delta’s annual revenue last year rose 31.76 percent year-on-year to NT$554.89 billion, also a record high for the company. Its strong performance reflected continued demand for high-performance power solutions and advanced liquid-cooling products used in artificial intelligence (AI) data centers,
SIZE MATTERS: TSMC started phasing out 8-inch wafer production last year, while Samsung is more aggressively retiring 8-inch capacity, TrendForce said Chipmakers are expected to raise prices of 8-inch wafers by up to 20 percent this year on concern over supply constraints as major contract chipmakers Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) and Samsung Electronics Co gradually retire less advanced wafer capacity, TrendForce Corp (集邦科技) said yesterday. It is the first significant across-the-board price hike since a global semiconductor correction in 2023, the Taipei-based market researcher said in a report. Global 8-inch wafer capacity slid 0.3 percent year-on-year last year, although 8-inch wafer prices still hovered at relatively stable levels throughout the year, TrendForce said. The downward trend is expected to continue this year,
Vincent Wei led fellow Singaporean farmers around an empty Malaysian plot, laying out plans for a greenhouse and rows of leafy vegetables. What he pitched was not just space for crops, but a lifeline for growers struggling to make ends meet in a city-state with high prices and little vacant land. The future agriculture hub is part of a joint special economic zone launched last year by the two neighbors, expected to cost US$123 million and produce 10,000 tonnes of fresh produce annually. It is attracting Singaporean farmers with promises of cheaper land, labor and energy just over the border.
US actor Matthew McConaughey has filed recordings of his image and voice with US patent authorities to protect them from unauthorized usage by artificial intelligence (AI) platforms, a representative said earlier this week. Several video clips and audio recordings were registered by the commercial arm of the Just Keep Livin’ Foundation, a non-profit created by the Oscar-winning actor and his wife, Camila, according to the US Patent and Trademark Office database. Many artists are increasingly concerned about the uncontrolled use of their image via generative AI since the rollout of ChatGPT and other AI-powered tools. Several US states have adopted
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