This article presents a circuit design for a digital potentiometer (DPOT) that adjusts its setting upon button press. It compares this push-to-change method to a release-to-change alternative. This is a technical design idea with no direct supply chain impact.
Western Digital locked in a $94 billion backlog and targets 80% margins by 2030. This reflects strong demand and pricing power. Bullish.
Nvidia acquired Cloverleaf to secure land and power for datacenters, addressing infrastructure bottlenecks for its liquid-cooled Blackwell and Rubin GPUs. This move supports GPU demand but highlights the critical need for liquid cooling infrastructure. Bullish for liquid cooling and power equipment suppliers.
Signaloid CEO announced a new ASIC tape-out in May 2026, leveraging distribution-extended compute hardware (UxHw) to achieve 10-100x performance improvements in robotics and physical AI applications.
TSMC plans 2026 mass production of COUPE CPO solutions, achieving 200Gbps operation with double power efficiency. The vertical stacking of electronic and photonic dies via SoIC technology reduces latency, supporting AI networking demands.
Keysight Chief Technologist Jonathan Wright discusses the integration of multi-physics workflows and AI to ensure engineering reliability, highlighting the 'AI assurance void' in complex system design.
Siemens EDA updated Questa One at DAC 2026, adding AI-driven verification and faster engines to handle complex SoC and 3D IC designs, though it is not yet fully autonomous.
Samsung's zHBM reduces thermal resistance by 50% and increases density 10x, while liquid cooling penetration in AI chips is projected to rise to 60% by 2027. As 3D stacking exacerbates thermal challenges, the industry is shifting toward CPO and STCO solutions. Bullish for advanced packaging and cooling technologies.
Noitom Robotics released the HiPHI dataset at the World Robot Conference, containing 617.5 hours of sub-millimeter precision human motion data. Designed for embodied AI and digital humans, the dataset is publicly available on Hugging Face. Neutral: While significant for AI research, this R&D milestone has no immediate impact on semiconductor supply chain trading decisions.
Fujian Province announced a 15th Five-Year Plan targeting a RMB 300 billion output value for IC and optoelectronics clusters by 2030. The plan focuses on expanding capabilities in chip design, specialty processes, and optoelectronic components to support AI and high-end display markets. This policy signals long-term regional capacity expansion and government support for the semiconductor ecosystem.
Neuromorphic chips face security vulnerabilities like side-channel attacks due to their fused memory-compute architecture. Unlike traditional processors, these brain-inspired systems expose silicon and timing circuits to new cyber threats. Neutral impact on immediate trading decisions.
NoMIS Power demonstrated a 6.5 kV SiC MOSFET with >8 kV blocking voltage and 90 mΩ Rds(on), currently in sampling. Mass production is scheduled for Q4 2026, extending their roadmap to 10 kV+ devices.
YMTC entered the global top three NAND makers with 14% share, but revenue lags due to low consumer prices. NAND contract prices surged approximately 75% in Q2 driven by AI server demand, while Samsung cut output to prioritize higher-margin DRAM.
Siemens and NVIDIA announced a collaboration at DAC to integrate NVIDIA's CUDA-X and NeMo models into Siemens' EDA tools for Agentic AI, aiming to improve semiconductor and PCB design flows. This partnership focuses on using AI agents for planning and execution, representing a significant R&D milestone in the EDA sector.
MediaTek qualified Infineon's 512 Mb Quad SPI NOR Flash for its Dimensity Auto Cockpit platform C-X1, enabling advanced AI-driven in-cabin features. This qualification signals growing demand for high-density automotive memory solutions.
Power Integrations (PI) announced the industry's first 2.2 kV lateral GaN switch under its PowiGaN portfolio. This technology demonstration targets high-voltage applications like data centers and EV auxiliary supplies.
This milestone indicates a shift toward higher-voltage GaN for improved power density.
The Trump administration is preparing new restrictions on Chinese-made optical transceivers for AI data centers to reduce reliance on Chinese technology in critical infrastructure.
Accellera hosted a DAC 2026 luncheon panel discussing AI integration in EDA workflows, focusing on interoperability and data exchange challenges. Industry experts from Bronco AI and academia debated the need for standards in AI-native design tools. Impact: Neutral. This is a technology trend discussion regarding future standards, not a supply chain disruption or immediate price movement.
Silanna has merged its operating companies Silanna UV and Silanna Semiconductor into a single corporate identity. Silanna UV provides far-UVC light sources, while Silanna Semiconductor produces ADCs and specialty analog chips. Neutral: Corporate restructuring with no immediate impact on supply or pricing.
4D imaging radar market projected to reach $1.2B by 2030 with a 25.2% CAGR. Hirain Technologies launched the LRR615 long-range radar using Arbe's chipset. Bullish: Strong demand outlook drives automotive sensor sector expansion.
Whose chips are really inside the hottest new products? We open them up and show you, one part at a time.
iPhone DuoFirst-pass chip map: 12 modules, 37 checkable identifiers (31 A / 6 B) and 19 public MPNs (16 externally searchable); A20 Pro, C2, N1 and the power/RF chains are located, while the NAND brand stays unconfirmed.All teardowns| Analog | $0.68 | −5.9% |
|---|---|---|
| Connector | $0.75 | +0.2% |
| CPU | $386.74 | −21.3% |
| DDR4 | $88.40 | −0.2% |
| DDR52026-W13 | $14.89 | −11.2% |
| GPU | $478.20 | +8.2% |
| MCU | $0.68 | −61.7%Unusual |
| MLCC | $0.01 | +54.0%Unusual |
| MOSFET | $0.12 | −82.8%Unusual |
| PMIC2026-W13 | $0.44 | −12.5% |
| SSD/HDD | $288.43 | n/a |