Soaring memory procurement costs are pushing smartphone makers to pass expenses on to consumers. As artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure expansion continues to squeeze global memory supplies, Huawei has officially raised device prices, citing an average US$200 increase in per-unit manufacturing costs. The move follows similar price hikes by Samsung Electronics across its flagship portfolio.

Rumors that TSMC is weighing a new semiconductor investment in Singapore have reignited concerns over its overseas expansion, while the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) said on October 2, 2026, that the government will help the chipmaker expand investment in Taiwan.

ficonTEC, a maker of optoelectronic automation assembly and test equipment, has announced a strategic partnership with Hermes Testing Solutions Inc. (HTSI) to support Taiwan’s rapidly expanding co-packaged optics (CPO) ecosystem. The collaboration will initially focus on the INS-2 test platform, advancing ficonTEC’s double-sided wafer-level testing architecture — with electrical testing from above and optical testing from below — towards commercialisation and scaled deployment.

Nvidia is testing glass-free PCB material systems for its next-generation AI server platforms, evaluating polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) and hydrocarbon (HC) resin formulations for possible use in the Rubin Ultra NVL576 Switch Tray, which is scheduled for mass production in the second half of 2027.