Nvidia's next-generation Rubin AI accelerators are expected to rely predominantly on 12-layer HBM4 high-bandwidth memory, despite reports that Nvidia has asked Samsung Electronics and SK hynix to increase supplies of 8-layer products. The source does not state the cause of the differing assessments; it notes that the differing assessments suggest changes in memory configurations do not necessarily signal weaker HBM demand, and that manufacturing constraints and supply shortages are expected to support memory prices in 2027. The event remains an expectation/report and the final configuration is not confirmed.
12-layer HBM48-layer HBM4Nvidia, Samsung Electronics and 3 totalDigiTimes Asia
Following stronger-than-expected demand for its Galaxy Z Fold8, Samsung Electronics submitted an expedited wafer production request to United Microelectronics Corporation (UMC), which was ultimately turned down. As a result, Samsung scaled back its September 2026 component production volume by 10%. The source ties this to persistent capacity tightness at mature process nodes. Samsung is also now evaluating GlobalFoundries (GF) as a secondary foundry partner for its OLED smartphone DDIs, with potential adoption set for late 2027 at the earliest.
OLED smartphone display driver ICs (DDIs)wafers at mature process nodesSamsung Electronics, United Microelectronics Corporation (UMC) and 3 totalDigiTimes AsiaCapacity Change
Related manufacturers
Samsung Electronics, United Microelectronics Corporation (UMC), GlobalFoundries (GF)
According to Reuters, citing sources, SK hynix is reportedly seeking U.S. approval to expand chip production in China via its U.S. subsidiary Solidigm, which aims to install additional equipment in unused space at the NAND flash facility in Dalian, China — specifically Mod B, a fabrication space completed in 2023 whose equipment installation was left unfinished due to the memory market downturn — as a condition for investing in a U.S. facility, with the expanded operations helping fund a new NAND manufacturing plant in the U.S.; Solidigm is also reportedly considering an initial public offering as early as next year to raise additional capital. However, SK hynix told Reuters that equipment installation at Dalian's Mod B facility is proceeding in consultation with and under authorization from the U.S. government, and that it is not seeking to expand capacity at Mod B; Solidigm declined to comment. As background: in September 2025, the U.S. Commerce Department revoked special authorizations that had allowed SK hynix and Samsung to receive U.S. chipmaking equipment at their Chinese facilities without individual export licenses, saying it would continue allowing shipments needed to maintain existing operations but did not intend to approve exports for capacity expansion or technology upgrades; in December 2025, Washington granted annual approval for U.S. chipmaking equipment shipments to Samsung and SK hynix's Chinese facilities for 2026, per Yonhap News, though Reuters reports the authorization for the Dalian plant limits equipment quantities and approval for additional U.S.-made equipment and technology in 2027 has yet to be issued. Per The Bell, access to advanced etching equipment is particularly important as NAND makers increase stacked layers, and using older tools can require additional processing steps, reducing productivity and raising manufacturing costs; per Reuters, the Dalian NAND facility uses equipment from major U.S. suppliers including Lam Research, Applied Materials, and KLA.
NAND flashSK hynix, Solidigm and 3 totalTrendForcePolicy/Regulation
Renesas Electronics has launched its first family of 100-V enhancement-mode (E-mode) discrete GaN power transistors, with part numbers RTP100E005G1FL, RTP100E2P6G1FL, RTP100E1P8G1FL-DSC and RTP100E1P2G1FL-DSC. The company says these low-voltage GaN FETs achieve industry-leading hard- and soft-switching figure-of-merit (FOM), delivering up to 35% lower hard-switching FOM and up to 63% lower soft-switching FOM than comparable GaN devices. Offered in FCLGA packages that maintain a silicon-compatible footprint, the GaN FETs let designers migrate from silicon MOSFET layouts without significant PCB rework. The RTP100E005G1FL and RTP100E2P6G1FL have typical on-resistance of 5 mΩ and 2.6 mΩ, respectively, while the dual-side-cooled RTP100E1P8G1FL-DSC and RTP100E1P2G1FL-DSC have on-resistance of 1.8 mΩ and 1.2 mΩ, respectively. Depending on application requirements and power-conversion architecture, the transistors can achieve up to 40–70% lower switching losses and up to twice the power density at the system level. The 100-V family targets high-power-density applications including AI data centers, humanoid robotics, and factory automation, and addresses applications such as synchronous rectification, multiphase buck conversion, and industrial motor drives. The new low-voltage GaN power transistors are available now, along with corresponding evaluation boards.
100-V enhancement-mode discrete GaN power transistorsRenesas ElectronicsEDN
RECOM Power, an Austrian designer and manufacturer of power conversion solutions, and CELUS, a cloud-based electronics design automation company, announced a partnership that brings a first set of RECOM power designs to the CELUS Design Platform. The partnership covers 37 RECOM CUBOs (reusable circuit modules on the platform, also known as Digital Datasheets): 29 are built around RECOM power ICs for isolated and switching DC/DC conversion, corresponding to RVP001 (4 CUBOs), RVP003 (9), RVP003S (1), RVP010 (6), RVP6501 (1), RVPW011 (1), RVPW012 (1), RVPW014 (4), RVPW015 (1) and RVPW016 (1) reference designs; the remaining 8 cover RECOM's R-78 switching regulators (6 CUBOs) and RAC AC/DC converter modules (2 CUBOs). The partnership arrives alongside the platform's new Power Nets capability, in which engineers define supply nets with voltage and direction and the Design Assistant proposes only solutions whose power specifications match those nets; designs continue through the platform's integrations with Altium Designer, KiCad, Siemens EDA and Autodesk Fusion. The CELUS Design Platform is used by more than 30,000 engineers in over 100 countries, with a library of more than 560,000 components. This is an announced partnership; the source does not state any price or supply impact.
power conversion solutionsisolated and switching DC/DC conversionR-78 switching regulatorsRECOM Power, CELUSEE JournalPartnership/M&A
TDK introduces the Micronas HAR 3025 dual-die stray-field robust motor position sensor with redundant design, ASIL D ready (SEooC) per ISO 26262:2018 and stray-field compensation per ISO 11452-8:2015; samples are available now and start of production is planned for the first half of 2027. The source does not state the cause.
On October 14, 2026, Norwegian communications company Comrod acquired TransOpto in Kristiansand, adding optical links to its defence portfolio. According to a Comrod press release, the acquisition has been completed, and financial terms were not disclosed. The source does not state the cause.
BOE Chairman Chen Yanshun visited South Korea on Oct. 12 and met with Samsung Electronics CEO TM Roh. Industry officials believe the two executives discussed supplies of liquid crystal display (LCD) panels for TVs and organic light-emitting diode (OLED) panels for smartphones. LCD supply volumes and pricing are key issues: Samsung Electronics has become increasingly dependent on Chinese panel makers since South Korean manufacturers stopped producing TV LCD panels, and its largest supplier is China Star Optoelectronics Technology (CSOT), a subsidiary of TCL. Samsung has reportedly been sharply increasing purchases from BOE this year to reduce its reliance on any single supplier, and negotiations over purchase prices amid fluctuations in LCD panel prices are another issue. The potential resumption of OLED transactions for smartphones is also drawing attention: Samsung Electronics began sourcing some OLED panels for its Galaxy A57 from CSOT this year; BOE previously supplied OLED panels for Samsung's Galaxy A and M series, but shipments stopped amid a patent dispute with Samsung Display, a Samsung Electronics subsidiary, and a settlement reached last November cleared the way for business to resume. The meeting came about four months after Roh visited BOE in China in June; Chen also traveled to South Korea last December to meet Samsung Electronics executives, and senior executives from the two companies have met three times in less than a year. Chen is scheduled to visit BOE Korea's recently relocated office on Oct. 14 before returning to China.
LCD panels for TVsOLED panels for smartphonesBOE, Samsung Electronics and 4 totalThe Elec
Related manufacturers
BOE, Samsung Electronics, China Star Optoelectronics Technology (CSOT), Samsung Display
Samsung Electronics unveiled its next-generation memory strategy at the Open Compute Project (OCP) Global Summit, an IT infrastructure event held in California on Oct. 12. Shim Ho-joon, vice president of the AE Team in Samsung's DS Division Memory Business, outlined three strategic priorities: speed, scalability and persistence. The stated reason in the source is that as AI models grow, the amount of data they must process is increasing, and Shim said memory capacity expansion and data storage technologies are becoming as important as memory bandwidth. Samsung plans to improve data processing speeds and computational efficiency through eighth-generation high-bandwidth memory (HBM5), custom HBM, zHBM and processing-in-memory (PIM) technologies; to expand AI system memory capacity and improve data management efficiency using CMM-D and Compute Express Link (CXL)-based technologies; and to increase AI data storage capacity and improve management efficiency with next-generation solid-state drives (SSDs), quad-level cell (QLC) technology and flexible data placement (FDP). These are stated plans, a strategy announcement rather than achieved results. Samsung also showcased the results of its collaboration with Nvidia, displaying a Groq wafer — Nvidia's language processing unit (LPU) — and the Groq 3 LPX system; its foundry business manufactures Groq chips using its 4-nanometer process. Samsung also jointly demonstrated a CXL-based memory expansion solution with AMD, and the two companies are collaborating with global customers on designs from the early stages of product development and expanding technology validation.
HBM5custom HBMzHBMSamsung Electronics, Nvidia and 4 totalThe Elec
Applied Materials opened the EPIC Center in California with up to $5 billion investment, partnering with TSMC, Intel, Samsung, Micron, and SK hynix to accelerate the commercialization of advanced semiconductor technologies, particularly for AI leadership.
Applied Materials, TSMC and 6 totalThe ElecPartnership/M&A
Related manufacturers
Applied Materials, TSMC, Intel, Samsung Electronics, Micron, SK hynix
Reported on October 14, 2026: Kontron has started US production of its rugged VX307H computing board at subsidiary Nextek in Huntsville, Alabama, and at the same time the product moves from build-to-order to build-to-stock to shorten delivery times for US defense customers. The VX307H is the first product in a broader expansion of Kontron's VPX manufacturing in the US, with the VX3060 and VX30101 planned to follow. Nextek handles the entire production chain in Huntsville, from PCB assembly to final assembly and test; the facility is certified to AS9100 and ISO 9001, is ITAR-registered and works to IPC workmanship standards. According to the company, defense customers are asking for greater supply-chain resilience, faster availability and closer access to support, and bringing VX307H production to the U.S. directly addresses those needs. The VX307H is a 3U VPX platform based on Intel's Xeon D-2700/2800 processors, designed in accordance with the SOSA standard.
King Yuan Electronics (KYEC) has signed a prepayment agreement with Nvidia to support its wholly owned US subsidiary, AeternZ, in building local testing capacity, giving Nvidia early access to AI chip testing capacity in the US. The move further clarifies KYEC's plans to invest in the US, with Fort Worth, Texas, reportedly emerging as the likely site of its operations in the country. The event remains at the agreement/plan stage and the capacity is not yet built.
AI chip testing capacityKYEC, Nvidia and 3 totalDigiTimes AsiaCapacity Change
ChangXin Memory Technologies (CXMT) plans to mass-produce next-generation 4F² DRAM by the end of 2026, potentially ahead of South Korean rivals Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix. The announcement has fuelled speculation that China's memory technology is approaching or surpassing South Korean capabilities, while positioning CXMT for an early entry into the emerging 3D DRAM market. This remains a plan; mass production has not yet been achieved.
Taiwanese semiconductor testing services provider King Yuan Electronics (KYEC) is expanding its US footprint, with its board approving an advance payment agreement with Nvidia. Under the arrangement, Nvidia will make advance payments to support KYEC and its US subsidiary AeternZ Semiconductor Testing in building local testing capacity, while securing capacity for Nvidia; the payments will be gradually offset through the provision of testing services. The source does not state specific payment amounts, capacity scale or a construction timetable, and the capacity build-out remains at the planned stage.
testing servicesKYEC, Nvidia and 3 totalDigiTimes AsiaPartnership/M&A
On its earnings call, ASML warned that even with a planned 30% capacity increase in 2027 followed by another targeted 30% expansion in 2028, its planned capacity would fall short of customer demand in both 2027 and 2028; Reuters, citing CEO Christophe Fouquet, notes that orders for 2028 are already pouring in, with some customers looking to secure equipment as far ahead as 2029 or even 2030. ASML expects to ship around 65 systems, up more than 50% from last year, and the outlook for DUV immersion tools has improved significantly: after initially anticipating a decline in shipments, the company now expects volumes to remain roughly flat year over year. ASML confirmed it will introduce the NXE:3800F EUV scanner in 2027, boosting wafer throughput from today's 230 wafers per hour to 260 wph, a breakthrough the company said is expected to meaningfully scale customer production capacities starting in 2028 and beyond; it is also upgrading key DUV immersion tools scheduled for delivery in 2027 to a record 330 wph. On pricing, ASML said pricing discussions with major customers have concluded, with the impact expected to be minimal in 2026, beginning in 2027 and fully visible from 2028 onward; according to The Elec, ASML is reportedly seeking a 10% price hike on replacement parts supplied to South Korea, with Samsung Electronics and SK hynix already notified. Financially, ASML posted record third-quarter net sales of €11.66 billion, up from €9.33 billion in the previous quarter; net profit surged to €4.96 billion from €2.92 billion and gross margin expanded to 57.5% from 54%. It forecasts Q4 revenue of €14.2 billion–€15.2 billion ($15.9 billion–$17.0 billion) with gross margin around 57%, and raised the lower end of full-year revenue guidance by €1 billion to €44 billion–€45 billion while maintaining the upper end, with gross margin of approximately 56%. The price impact has not yet taken effect and the capacity expansions remain planned.
SEMI expects Americas 300mm fab equipment spending to more than double from US$18.1 billion in 2026 to US$40.6 billion in 2029, driven by U.S. investment and expansions by TSMC, Intel, Micron, and Samsung.
300mm fab equipmentTSMC, Intel and 5 totalTrendForceCapacity Change
Eric Hong joins Mixel as VP of Engineering, bringing 30 years of experience to lead analog and mixed-signal IP development. He highlights the challenges customers face in delivering complex SoCs and emphasizes Mixel's end-to-end support approach to reduce integration risk and accelerate time-to-market.
CanSemi debuted on the ChiNext board on October 13 with an IPO price of CNY 12.01 per share; shares opened at CNY 45, up 274.69%, raising approximately CNY 7.5 billion.
CXMT detailed its 4F² DRAM architecture roadmap, targeting DDR5 RDIMMs by end-2026, while its global DRAM market share rose to 9.5% in 2Q26. The 4F² tech reduces cell area by 33%, placing CXMT roughly two years ahead of SK hynix and Samsung. Bearish for global DRAM prices due to intensified competition and potential supply expansion.
DRAMDDR5LPDDR5CXMT (ChangXin Memory Technologies), SK hynix and 3 totalTrendForceCapacity Change
Related manufacturers
CXMT (ChangXin Memory Technologies), SK hynix, Samsung