Chip Industry Week In Review

Acquisitions and business pivots

• Teradyne acquired Israel-based TestInsight, a semiconductor test provider with pattern conversion, validation, and virtual test capabilities.
• Credo plans to acquire DustPhotonics, a developer of silicon photonics PICs for optical transceivers.
• Molex plans to acquire Teramount, a provider of detachable, passive-alignment fiber-to-chip connectivity solutions for CPO.
• Allbirds sold its footwear assets and will now become an integrated GPU-as-a-Service and AI-native cloud solutions provider called NewBird AI.

Advanced nodes

• Rapidus will receive an additional US $3.9B from the Japanese government for semiconductor projects, covering both advanced logic manufacturing and 2nm chiplet/package technology. The company also opened an Analysis Center and Chiplet Solutions facility in Hokkaido, aiming for 2027 mass production.

By the numbers

• Morningstar expects the chip industry will reach $1.1T of revenue in 2026, earlier than previously predicted, with no sign of an AI slowdown.
• Meeting AI demand is another matter, though. The boom is forcing a structural shift in the memory market, with 62% of manufacturers reporting limited supplies and longer lead times, 82% report higher prices, and only 14% predict that conditions will get better in the next 6 months, reports the Global Electronics Association.
• And after 10 quarters of growth, smartphone shipments declined 4.1% in the first quarter, driven by memory supply constraints, per IDC.
• Meanwhile, 80 startups raised over $8.4B, with massive rounds for AI, EDA and manufacturing, in the latest chip industry quarterly funding report.
• Financials: ASML, Aixtron, TSMC (1st quarter).

Geopolitics

• Bromine, used to produce IC-grade hydrogen bromide gas used in chip etching, is an emerging supply risk due to the war.
• Adding to the wider global supply squeeze, helium exports will now require special approval from Russia, the world’s third-largest producer.

Semiconductor agents

Cadence expanded its portfolio of ChipStack AI agents with a head agent designed to orchestrate all aspects of semiconductor and system design, along with agents specialized for custom and analog, and for digital implementation and signoff. Cadence is also collaborating with Nvidia to combine agentic AI, physics-based simulation, and digital twins for semiconductor and physical AI engineering, and with Google to integrate Super Agent with Gemini on Google Cloud.

Fig.1: Cadence CEO Anirudh Devgan and Jensen Huang discussing AI’s impact at CadenceLive this week.

AI tracker

•  AI use is increasing across US workplaces, improving employee productivity and coinciding with more hiring, layoffs, and disruption, but it has not yet fundamentally transformed how most work gets done, says a Gallup poll.
• Meanwhile, IDC predicts AI spending will grow five-fold from 2024 to 2029 in Asia/Pacific.
• Stanford’s AI Index Report warns of the broadening real-world impact of AI’s rapid progress this year, including a widening gap between AI’s abilities and preparations to manage it, heightened concerns around energy usage, security, and the level of labor disruption.

Fig.2: Accelerating AI capability. Source: Stanford 2026 AI Index Report [Ref. 1]

Quick links to more news:

Global
In-Depth
Reports and Deals
New Technologies
Security
Vehicles, Batteries
Workforce, Education
Research
Events and Further Reading

Global

Americas

• Advantest opened a new innovation center in San Jose, CA, offering clean rooms and the latest test technologies and test insertions for advanced packaging and complex device architectures. The company is opening another center in Sunnyvale, CA, this summer.
• SEMI and McKinsey are conducting an anonymous semiconductor supply chain survey, with input due by May 8.
• SCREEN’s new R&D center at NY Creates’ Albany nanotech complex opened.
• The US government is awarding $5.4M toward five gallium recovery projects.
• The Northeast Microelectronics Coalition is giving out $1M to 8 startups for AI, photonics, and RF systems.
• Intel Foundry hired Shawn Han as SVP/GM of Foundry Services. Han most recently oversaw sales at Samsung Foundry.

Europe

• Woopix broke ground on its new cleanroom in Tenerife, Spain, for its wavefront phase imaging metrology.
• The EuroHPC JU inaugurated a new photonic quantum computer in France.
• The UK Semiconductor Centre established its headquarters at the Institute of Physics in King’s Cross, London.

Asia

• Air Liquide plans to spend €200M for two new industrial gas production units in Hiroshima, Japan.
• JSR has established a planarization process solutions research center in Hsinchu, Taiwan.
• NAND flash memory chip maker YMTC will complete a new Chinese factory this year, plus build two more with the capacity of 100,000 wafers per month, reports Reuters.
• Alpha and Omega Semiconductor started production in its new power device OSAT facility in Sanand, Gujarat.

Reports and Deals

More deals, launches

• Inspection and metrology company Camtek plans to acquire Visual Layer, an Israel-based AI visual analytics.
• Rebellions, SKT, and Arm are teaming up on an AI server that combines Arm AGI CPU with Rebellions’ AI chips.
• Vexlum and Menlo Systems are collaborating on a modular photonics source for ultra-precise optical atom clock timekeeping.
• SNIA launched the MRAM Alliance SIG to promote MRAM adoption across a broad range of applications.
• SF-based VFabTech launched this week, focusing on semiconductor fab development, cleanroom planning, workforce training, and other semiconductor capacity expansion activities.

Fundings

• Terra Quantum plans to go public.
• AlixLabs added ~$1.1M in funding to further its ALE pitch-splitting tech.
• CamGraPhIC will receive a €211M from Italy to develop graphene-based optical I/O.
• Sygaldry raised $139M to build quantum-accelerated AI servers.
• Pixel Photonics raised ~$16M for its waveguide-integrated superconducting nanowire single-photon detectors.
• Peak Quantum raised ~$2.6M to make superconducting quantum chips with built-in error protection.
• nEye.ai raised $80M for reconfigurable optical circuit switching interconnects that combine silicon photonics with MEMS technology.

Reports

• EDA and semiconductor IP revenue grew 10.3% in Q4 2025 to $5.5B, according to the ESD Alliance. While this continues a years-long double-digit run, the Q4 growth picture was more nuanced.
• 2025 wafer fab equipment revenues grew 12% YoY, hitting $143B (Counterpoint)
• Global quantum computing market to double by 2028 (QED-C)
• Nvidia’s global AI empire partnerships (FDI Intelligence)
• Scope 3-Category 1 Greenhouse Gas Emissions in Electronics (GEA)
• $48B Market for Photonic IC-Based Transceivers by 2036 (IDTechEx)
• 1/2 of new warehouses will be human-optional facilities by 2030 (Gartner)

Opinions

• Reining in the Export Control Arms Race (CSIS)
• Here’s how to get the $7T AI HW buildout right (WEF)
• The Right Way to Sell Chips to China (AI Frontiers)
• China’s economic ambitions and its 5-Year Plan (Brookings)
• Battle for AI Dominance, Computing Power Is the New High Ground (AEI)
• Has The Iran War Triggered Another Semiconductor Crisis (Eurasia Review)

New Technologies

Onto Innovation‘s recently released Dragonfly G5 inspection platform is now qualified for 2.5D AI packaging applications.

Intel launched its 18A process node-built Core Series 3 mobile processors for small businesses and edge use cases.

Athena introduced a new agentic AI tool, FabOrchestrator, for smart manufacturing in the fab and other environments.

In a recent tech talk, D2S‘ Aki Fujimura talks about how far the industry has come in terms of computational resources and multi-beam mask writing to facilitate the move to curvilinear masks and design.

Nvidia released a family of open AI models for quantum processor calibration and quantum error-correction decoding.

Meta shared details of its second-gen Meta Training and Inference Accelerator (MTIA) chip designed for large-scale infrastructure. Meta will also partner with Broadcom to co-develop multiple generations of the MTIA and deploy over 1GW of capacity using Broadcom’s XPU platform and Ethernet technologies.

Faraday Technology announced IP that integrates SST eFlash controller and BiST with analog and high-speed interface PHY IPs for UMC‘s 28nm platform.

NASA selected Synopsys and Electro Magnetic Applications to research Artemis spacesuit triboelectrification, electrical charging, and electrostatic discharge resulting from exposure to the lunar environment.

Workforce, Education

Teenagers can now suit up in a 16,500 sf. full cleanroom environment in a Phoenix school district, preparing students for jobs in the fab, packaging facilities as well as robotics training.

SEMI is extending its SEMIquest hands-on immersion semiconductor experience at the Arizona Science Center through May 31.

The Oregon government awarded over $8.5M in grants to eight recipients to bolster the state’s semiconductor talent pipeline, covering activities such as building a mock fab room, dual credit opportunities in high schools, and internships.

Mitsubishi Chemical, PsiQuantum, and the U. of Tokyo joined forces on training and education for Japan’s quantum workforce.

UT Dallas was awarded a $700k grant from a Texas state fund, targeted for a semiconductor training cleanroom project.

Research

DARPA launched the Heterogeneous Architectures for Quantum program to design architectures that combine different qubit types, each selected for what it does best, into a single system. In addition to software frameworks and circuit compilers, the effort aims to develop interconnects that enable communication between different types of qubits.

UCLA-led researchers discovered that metallic theta-phase tantalum nitride conducted heat nearly 3x better than copper or silver.

3D electron diffraction provides a more comprehensive nanoscale picture of how organic solar-cell materials are structured within a TEM, helping FAU researchers better connect molecular arrangement to device performance.

Computer architects may find this Hall of Fame report useful, showing a ranking of top research papers across the top conferences and links to their publications. Onur Mutlu from ETH Zurich took the top spot.

And..

• Neural Computers (Meta AI, KAUST)
• Photonic chip packaging for extreme environments (NIST et al.)
• New materials show promise for parallel computing (Clemson)
• Characterization of Electr. Stress-Induced Changes in Multilayer MoS₂ (NIST)
• Capacitor-free next-gen DRAM structure based on oxide semiconductors (ETRI)
• Trilinear CIM Architecture for Energy-Efficient Transformer Accel. (Penn State)
• Laser absorption spectroscopy: a breakthrough in plasma etch endpoint detection for EUV and ALE patterning process (Lam Research)

Security

A recent Global Electronics Association report warns that the FCC’s March 2026 proposal to classify consumer routers made abroad as covered equipment (meaning a security risk) could strain the US router market by hiking costs, tightening supply, and delaying adoption of newer Wi-Fi technology. Meanwhile, Netgear routers were granted conditional approval and are exempt from the router ban.

NIST describes new techniques for improving system security and resilience in bus-connected hardware, including data fusion techniques and “repurposing component firmware as a network of forensic units.”

University of Florida security researchers presented challenges and opportunities in emulation-based SoC security verification and validation.

AI security

• IBM rolled out its Autonomous Security, a multi-agent‑powered service aimed at automating vulnerability remediation at machine speed.
• ETH Zurich professor Florian Tramèr discusses why Claude Mythos makes cyber attacks easier, with “a single hacker can suddenly try out thousands of variants.”
• Meanwhile, OpenAI is expanding access to its Trusted Access for Cyber program so select security teams can use advanced models, like GPT-5.4-Cyber.
• Cisco is in preliminary talks to acquire AI security startup Astrix for ~$250M, reports The Information.

New alerts

• AMD issued a high severity alert on incorrect use of the LocateProtocol Service.
• Find this week’s CISA alerts this week here, and NIST alerts here.

Security Research

• Deductive System for Contract Satisfaction Proofs (CISPA, Harvard, MPI-SP)
• HW-Level Governance of AI Compute (U. of Chester)
• Cryptography-Inspired IP Protection through Fine-Grain HW Redaction (UF)
• Side-Channel-Protected Stream Cipher HW for 6G Systems (Tsinghua)
• Security Analysis of Universal Circuits as a Mechanism for HW Obfuscation (U. of Idaho, Carnegie Mellon)

Vehicles, Batteries

The Automotive Edge Computing Consortium rolled out a data-first architecture, utilizing a distributed, tiered model that processes and moves data across multiple layers. “By combining diverse communication methods — including cellular, Wi-Fi, and inter-vehicle data transfer — with distributed computing across vehicles, edge infrastructure, and cloud platforms, the data-first architecture offers a practical path forward for managing automotive data at scale,” stated Ryokichi Onishi, AECC board chairperson, in the consortium’s news release.

Imec examined Arm’s role in the Automotive Chiplet Program, and also added a new chip partner, Silicon Box.

Infineon retained its leadership position as the top automotive semiconductor supplier, with a 2025 overall market share of ~13% and a MCU share of 36%. Also, the company’s rad-hard solutions were part of NASA’s Artemis II mission in space.

Bosch and Qualcomm are expanding their partnership to include ADAS and emerging centralized vehicle architectures.

Samsung Electro-Mechanics rolled out the ultra-high-voltage MLCCs for xEV high-voltage powertrains for BEVs and PHEVs.

AVs

• AV-AI startup Wayve received a $60M infusion from AMD, Arm, and Qualcomm to fund its ADAS and automated driving platform.
• The robotaxi market will hit $167B by 2035, with 3.6M vehicles, predicts Counterpoint.
• After 18 months of testing, the Dutch vehicle authority will allow Tesla‘s full self-driving supervised system with the driver remaining responsible and in control, and will also seek EU-wide approval.
• Elon Musk announced the Tesla AI design team taped out its AI15 self-driving chip.

EVs, batteries

• Slate Auto, a Jeff Bezos-backed startup, raised $650M for its electric truck, scheduled to be rolled out later this year. The advertised price point in the mid-$20,000 range garnered more than 160,000 reservations.
• In Q1, EV sales fell 27% versus the prior year, reports Cox Automotive, and accounted for 5.8% of total new car sales.
• Doug Field, Ford‘s top EV head, is leaving as part of a reorg.
• Rivian is teaming up with Redwood Materials on a repurposed battery energy storage system for Rivian’s manufacturing plant.
• A KIST-led team created a 15 minute trimethyl phosphate treatment to secure more moisture-tolerant magnesium-metal battery electrodes, potentially lowering rechargeable magnesium battery manufacturing costs.

Vehicle research, reports

• End-to-End Language-Driven Autonomous Driving (Texas Tech, Bosch)
• IME Be the Path for Printed Electronics to Break into Automotives (IDTechEx)
• DNN-Based Roadwork Detection for Autonomous Driving (FU Berlin)
• Drone Dataset for Complex Vehicle-VRU Interactions within Mixed Traffic
• Battery State-of-Health Using Kolmogorov–Arnold Network (Texas Tech)
• How Russia Is Building a Sovereign Drone Ecosystem for AI-Driven Autonomy (CSIS)
• Range and Lifetime Extension of EVs via Cell-Level Inverters (Berkeley, Chalmers, BMW)
• Precise intrinsic calibration and geometrical stability analysis of automotive solid-state LiDAR sensors over temperature and lifetime (UAS et al.)

Trending Video

State Of The Market For Edge Silicon: What makes one AI chip better than another? Steve Roddy, chief marketing officer at Quadric, talks about the need to balance performance and efficiency with flexibility for different applications, what makes one chip better than another, and how to determine the best combination of processing elements.

Events and Further Reading

Upcoming webinars are here, including:

• Understanding UALink Architecture: A Protocol Deep Dive, Apr. 21
• HDI Design Workflow: From Decisions to Fabrication, Apr. 22

Find upcoming chip industry events here, including:

[Ref. 1] Stanford AI Index References:
*Sha Sajadieh, Loredana Fattorini, Raymond Perrault, Yolanda Gil, Vanessa Parli, Lapo Santarlasci, Juan Pava, Nestor Maslej, Russ Altman, Erik Brynjolfsson, Carla Brodley, Jack Clark, Virginia Dignum, Vipin Kumar, James Landay, Terah Lyons, James Manyika, Juan Carlos Niebles, Yoav Shoham, Elham Tabassi, Russell Wald, Toby Walsh, Dan Weld. “The AI Index 2026 Annual Report,” AI Index Steering Committee, Institute for Human-Centered AI, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, April 2026.