TSMC built its dominance not just on cutting-edge fabs, but on closely guarded know-how that rivals cannot easily replicate. Now, that edge is at the center of a high-stakes legal fight. Former senior vice president Wei-jen Lo stands accused of walking out with the crown jewels — key parameters and trade secrets tied to the chipmaker’s most advanced processes — before crossing the Pacific to join rival Intel. The case has landed in Taiwan’s Intellectual Property and Commercial Court, and the outcome could set a precedent for how the island defends its most valuable technological assets.

Lumotive, a pioneer in programmable optical semiconductor technology, has demonstrated the world’s first programmable two-dimensional (2D) photonic beamforming chip. Built on its Light Control Metasurface (LCM) architecture, the chip enables electronic control of light across two dimensions within a single device — a capability long pursued in optical science and widely considered essential for scalable programmable optical systems.

The annual Nvidia GTC conference has become a global barometer for the artificial intelligence (AI) industry. In a nearly two-hour keynote, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang laid out a clear vision for AI’s future: a shift in focus from model and algorithm competition to competition over computing power, efficiency, and commercial deployment.