Worldwide semiconductor manufacturing equipment sales rose 15% to a record US$135.1 billion in 2025 from US$117.1 billion a year earlier, driven by investment in advanced logic, memory, and AI-related capacity expansion, SEMI, the global semiconductor industry association, said.

Apple is accelerating development of next-generation wearable hardware, with plans to launch its first smart glasses as early as 2027, Bloomberg reported. The initial product will not include a display, reflecting a focus on hands-free operation and ecosystem integration as the company moves into a market led by Meta Platforms and EssilorLuxottica.

Pegatron on April 10 reported March revenue of NT$83.97 billion (US$2.6 billion), rebounding more than 20% from February’s low of NT$67.98 billion, as production normalized after a shorter working month.

Qualcomm is reportedly exploring a partnership with China’s Changxin Memory Technologies (CXMT) to develop custom DRAM tailored for smartphones, a move that reflects mounting pressure across the mobile supply chain as memory shortages and rising costs reshape industry dynamics.

Rising geopolitical tensions between the US and Iran in late February 2026 drove a sharp rally in global crude oil and petrochemical feedstock prices, including ethylene and propylene, lifting prices across the petrochemical chain. Against expectations of potential supply disruptions, customers moved quickly to rebuild inventories, boosting first-quarter revenues for Taiwan’s major petrochemical producers, according to earnings releases on April 10.

The San Francisco home of OpenAI CEO Sam Altman appears to have been targeted twice in three days. In both cases, no one was injured. Police arrested suspects in both incidents at the scene, though their motives remain unclear.