AI demand to sustain memory boom in 2026; new competition among the “Big Three” begins.

As Nvidia and Coherent signal a shift toward all-optical networking to solve the AI power crisis, Redmond-based Lumotive has announced a milestone that could redefine data center scalability. In an interview with DIGITIMES Asia, Gleb Akselrod, Co-founder and CTO of Lumotive, detailed the success of the world’s first programmable 2D optical beamforming chip.

At GTC 2026, Nvidia formally unveiled an end-to-end autonomous driving technology stack and announced plans to deploy the full solution through ride-hailing platform Uber. The move is widely seen as a turning point in the intensifying robotaxi race, sharpening the competitive landscape with autonomous driving leader Waymo.

Analog Devices has officially launched its advanced manufacturing facility in Thailand, aiming to enhance the company’s advanced manufacturing and testing capabilities while promoting a more resilient and sustainable semiconductor production footprint across the Asia-Pacific region.

Samsung Electronics is reportedly set to exclusively supply sixth-generation high-bandwidth memory (HBM4) to OpenAI while reallocating more than half of its advanced foundry capacity to internal production, according to Hankyung and industry sources. The move underscores the South Korean chipmaker’s drive to meet surging demand for artificial intelligence (AI) components as orders from major customers — including Nvidia and Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) — continue to accelerate.

Malaysia’s semiconductor industry is closely monitoring helium supply risks amid escalating tensions in the Middle East, though companies have not yet reported operational disruptions.