Taiwan’s renewable energy ambitions face setbacks amid a government transition and policy disputes. President Lai Ching-te’s “Energy Transition 2.0” aims for diversification, but solar and offshore wind projects lag behind expectations. Geothermal, hydrogen, and small hydropower initiatives advance at a crawl, casting doubt on 2025 targets.

Japan’s semiconductor revival must not only involve Taiwan but also include strategic cooperation with the US, emphasized Kenzo Fujisue, a renowned Japanese scholar and former government official, in a recent interview with DIGITIMES. The discussion took place in Taipei with DIGITIMES President Colley Hwang, where they explored opportunities and challenges in global semiconductor supply chain collaboration.

ChangXin Memory Technologies (CXMT) is leveraging China’s aggressive localization policies to advance toward mass production of DDR5 chips. Despite lingering concerns over production yields and cost disadvantages, supply chain sources report that CXMT’s DDR5 chips have passed validation from multiple leading Chinese server manufacturers. By late 2025, DDR5 could account for 50% of CXMT’s total production capacity, broadening its influence beyond consumer markets to server applications and intensifying global competition in the memory sector.

Tokyo Electron Limited (TEL) forecasts the global semiconductor market will surpass US$1 trillion by 2030, with AI-related semiconductors driving 70% of the growth. To seize this opportunity, TEL aims to invest JPY1.5 trillion(US$9.5 billion) in R&D by March 2029.