Today's Semiconductors Pulse
SandboxAQ Wins $500M CHIPS Act Grant to Harden U.S. Semiconductor Supply Chains
The U.S. Department of Commerce awarded SandboxAQ a $500 million CHIPS Act R&D contract aimed at strengthening domestic semiconductor supply chains. The funding will support the development of alternative chemistries, rare‑earth‑free magnets, and lithium‑cobalt‑free batteries using the firm’s physics‑first Large Quantitative Models and its ReAQT simulation platform.
Ubuntu 26.04 Provides More Performance For AMD Ryzen AI Max "Strix Halo"
Ubuntu 26.04 brings significant performance gains to AMD’s Ryzen AI Max+ 395 “Strix Halo” APUs compared with the prior Ubuntu 25.04 release. The new distribution runs the Linux 7.0 kernel and GCC 15.2, delivering double‑digit CPU speedups and noticeable Radeon 8060S GPU improvements on the same Framework Desktop testbed. Benchmarks on a system with 64 GB RAM and a 2 TB WD_BLACK SN700 SSD confirm the software stack’s impact rather than hardware changes. These results highlight how rapid Linux ecosystem updates can enhance Zen 5‑based platforms.
Broadcom Signs Expanded Deals with Google and Anthropic, Giving the AI Startup Access to 3.5 Gigawatts of Compute Capacity
Broadcom will manufacture future generations of Google’s AI chips and has expanded its agreement with Anthropic, granting the startup access to roughly 3.5 gigawatts of Google Tensor Processing Unit compute, up from 1 GW. Anthropic disclosed annualized revenue now exceeds $30 billion,...
Intel QAT Driver With Linux 7.1 Adding Zstd Offload Support
Intel’s QuickAssist (QAT) driver for the Linux 7.1 kernel now supports Zstandard (Zstd) offloading across Gen 4, Gen 5, and Gen 6 accelerators. Gen 4/5 offload compression only for buffers 8 KB‑512 KB, while Gen 6 offloads both compression and decompression with no size ceiling but falls...
Nanopower Moves nPZero IC Into Volume Production for Ultra-Low-Power IoT
Nanopower Semiconductor announced that its nPZero power‑saving IC has entered volume production, moving from evaluation kits to large‑scale deployment. The chip targets battery‑powered and energy‑harvesting IoT devices by handling sensor polling independently of the host MCU. By using user‑defined thresholds,...
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[OFC 2026] Part 3 of 5: Packaging: Glass Substrates to 3D Hybrid Bonding
The OFC 2026 session highlighted that AI‑driven data centers are now limited by packaging rather than raw silicon speed. Co‑Packaged Optics (CPO) aims to overcome this bottleneck by integrating optical engines directly into switch packages, but the choice of substrate...
Intel Partners with Tesla and SpaceX on Terafab
Intel announced a partnership with Tesla, SpaceX, and xAI to create the Terafab joint venture, a massive vertically integrated semiconductor facility in Austin, Texas. The fab aims to deliver about 1 terawatt of AI compute per year, supporting billions of...
As AMD AI Narrative Changes, Here's What Comes Next
AMD's AI narrative has shifted from future promise to tangible earnings, with data‑center revenue reaching $5.4 billion in Q4 2025 and a $10.3 billion total. The company is betting on the MI450 accelerator and Helios rack‑scale platform as the next growth engine,...
Vultr Named NVIDIA Exemplar Cloud for Achieving Performance Targets on NVIDIA Blackwell GPUs
Vultr became one of the first NVIDIA Exemplar Cloud providers, meeting the performance standards of NVIDIA reference designs on Blackwell GPUs. The validation used a 512‑node HGX B200 cluster running eleven AI models, showing high throughput and efficiency. This achievement...
Intel to Join Musk’s Terafab in Surprise Move, Lifting Stock
Intel announced a partnership with Elon Musk’s Terafab project to develop next‑generation chips for AI, robotics, and autonomous systems. The chipmaker will help "refactor" the factory’s technology, a process aimed at boosting chip performance and reliability. The surprise move aligns...
Chinese Memory Giants to Gain Market Share via Lower Prices, Expanded Capacity: Analysts
Chinese memory chipmakers YMTC and CXMT are leveraging a 15% price advantage and new production lines to capture market share amid an AI‑driven super‑cycle. YMTC plans to start mass‑producing advanced NAND in Wuhan by late 2026, positioning itself as the...
Nvidia Pours $2 Billion Into Marvell to Power AI‑centric Networking and Data‑center Chips
Nvidia has committed $2 billion to Marvell Technology, cementing a strategic partnership that integrates Marvell’s custom XPUs and silicon‑photonic networking into Nvidia’s NVLink Fusion AI ecosystem. The deal aims to accelerate AI‑focused telecom infrastructure and data‑center deployments.
Monolithic Bidirectional GaN Switch-Based Buck-Boost Converter
A novel condensed buck‑boost (CoBB) converter replaces the traditional multilevel flying‑capacitor architecture with a monolithic GaN bidirectional switch (BDS), cutting active device count and improving efficiency. The prototype, built with Transphorm (Renesas) GaN BDS devices, delivered over 95% efficiency at...
Photonics Emerges as AI’s Next Data Bottleneck
From Copper to Light: The Critical Bottleneck Reshaping AI Infrastructure 🧵 Photonics is becoming one of the most important AI bottlenecks. Compute is scaling fast, but moving data between GPUs is now the harder problem. Copper hits power and bandwidth limits....
Metasurface Enables Supersensitive, Superfast Thermal-Based Photodetector
Researchers at Duke University have created a metasurface‑enhanced pyroelectric photodetector that operates at a record‑breaking 3‑dB bandwidth of 2.8 GHz, equivalent to a 125 picosecond rise time. The device uses an ultra‑thin array of silver nanocubes atop a gold mirror, separated by...
China Actively Targeting Taiwan's Chip Talent and Technology, Security Report Says
Taiwan’s National Security Bureau warned that Beijing is intensifying efforts to lure semiconductor engineers and intellectual property from the island. The campaign targets senior chip designers, researchers, and supply‑chain specialists with attractive salaries and research grants. By siphoning talent, China...
Anthropic Signs Massive Deal with Google and Broadcom for More Compute as Devs Hit Limits
Anthropic has struck a multi‑year, multi‑billion‑dollar partnership with Google Cloud and Broadcom to dramatically expand its compute capacity. The deal will provision roughly 10,000 new TPUs and custom Broadcom AI chips, allowing the company to lift the recent restriction on...
Infineon Launches Digital Controller for 800V AI Server Power Systems
Infineon Technologies introduced the XDPP1188-200C digital power controller, aimed at 800‑volt AI server power architectures in data centers. The device enables conversion from 48 V to lower rails and from ±400 V/800 V DC to 48 V, 24 V, or 12 V, reducing bus‑bar losses and...
Anthropic Signs Multi-Gigawatt TPU Deal with Google and Broadcom
Anthropic has struck a multi‑gigawatt TPU agreement with Google and Broadcom, with the hardware slated to be deployed in the United States beginning in 2027. The deal reflects surging demand, as the company’s annualized revenue now tops $30 billion, up from...
ACM Research Unifies Product Portfolio as ACM Planetary Family
ACM Research announced the ACM Planetary Family, a unified branding that reorganizes its equipment into eight process‑aligned series covering cleaning, advanced packaging, electroplating, furnace, track, PECVD, panel‑level packaging, and polishing. The new structure reflects the company’s evolution from a single...
IVWorks Raises $4.5m to Expand reGaN Technology Into RF and AI Power Semi Markets
IVWorks Co Ltd, a South Korean GaN wafer maker, secured $4.5 million in new funding, raising its total investment to $33 million. The capital will expand its proprietary reGaN selective‑area regrowth technology into E‑band and W‑band RF markets and AI‑focused power‑delivery applications....
IIT-M Pravartak, Maven Silicon Launch Semiconductor Certification Programmes
IIT‑M Pravartak Technologies Foundation has teamed up with Maven Silicon to roll out two nine‑month semiconductor certification programmes covering VLSI design and verification as well as embedded systems design. The curriculum blends online instruction, hands‑on laboratory work, and industry‑focused capstone...
The Specialty Device Surge Part 2: The Process Control Challenges Of MEMS, Co-Packaged Optics, And More
The second installment of the Specialty Device Surge series highlights how MEMS, CMOS image sensors, SiC/GaN power devices, and co‑packaged optics are confronting unprecedented process‑control hurdles as wafer sizes expand to 300 mm. Each device family relies on unique materials—piezo films,...
Enhancing Silicon Reliability With In-System Test And SLM Data
The semiconductor industry is leveraging in‑system test (IST) and Silicon Lifecycle Management (SLM) data to boost chip reliability across design, manufacturing, and field operation. Traditional DFT methods such as ATPG, scan chains, and BIST remain core, but embedded monitors and...
Kandou AI Raises $225M in Series A Funding
Swiss fabless startup Kandou AI secured a $225 million Series A round led by Maverick Silicon, with SoftBank, Synopsys, Cadence and Alchip participating. The funding will accelerate production of its Copper MIMO (chord signaling) chips that aim to double data‑rate capacity while slashing...
Intel Nova Lake to Use Xe3 Graphics, AX High-End Variant Cancelled
Intel’s upcoming Core Ultra 400 "Nova Lake" CPUs will ship with existing Xe3 graphics rather than the anticipated Xe4 architecture, while higher‑tier models will receive an enhanced Xe3P variant. The company also cancelled the high‑end AX SKU for this generation,...
Samsung Sees Massive 600 Percent Q1 Profit Surge as DRAM Market Tightens
Samsung Electronics is projected to post a record Q1 2026 operating profit of about $23.7 billion, a 600% year‑over‑year increase driven by a tightening DRAM market. The semiconductor division’s gross margin surged to roughly 80%, up from 15% a year earlier, as...
Archer Materials Advances Silicon Biochip Beta Prototype While Reaffirming Graphene as Next‑generation Platform
Archer Materials announced that its Stage 1 biochip project with IMEC is complete and the company is moving to a silicon‑based beta prototype. The prototype will combine a functionalized potassium sensor with cartridge engineering, microfluidics, and readout electronics for external validation....
Broadcom Secures Expanded AI Chip Deals, Shares Surge
Only good news for $AVGO I will post my scorecard soon. Broadcom agrees to expanded chip deals with Google, Anthropic - Broadcom said it agreed to produce future versions of Google's artificial intelligence chips, - The company also announced an expanded deal with Anthropic,...
Air Liquide Launches Advanced Materials Plant in Taiwan – Just Now, the Chemistry Behind AI Chips Is Becoming a Strategic...
On March 25, 2026 Air Liquide inaugurated its first large‑scale advanced materials plant in Taichung, Taiwan, dedicated to deposition and etch chemicals essential for sub‑2 nm semiconductor nodes. The facility focuses on atomic‑layer‑deposition precursors needed for AI and high‑performance‑computing chips. The launch...
SK Hynix Links Its Record Order From ASML to Its Plans for a U.S. Stock Market Listing, Sending a Pretty...
SK hynix announced an 11.95 trillion‑won (≈ $7.97 bn) order for ASML EUV lithography tools, the largest publicly disclosed single ASML customer deal. The machines will equip the new Yongin semiconductor cluster and the M15X site in Cheongju, supporting HBM4 and advanced 1c‑nm DRAM...
Nvidia’s RTX 50 SUPER Refresh Continues to Face Delays, and Even the RTX 60 Could Be Pushed Back Further
Rumors in early 2026 indicate NVIDIA has postponed the mid‑cycle RTX 50 SUPER refresh originally expected at CES 2026, and the mass‑production timeline for the next‑generation RTX 60 series may shift from late 2027 to 2028. The delays stem from tight GDDR7 memory supplies, which...
Renesas Rad-Hard ICs Aboard NASA’s Artemis II
Renesas Electronics’ radiation‑hardened integrated circuits are aboard NASA’s Artemis II mission, which launched on April 1 from Kennedy Space Center. The Intersil‑branded rad‑hard ICs are embedded in Orion’s avionics and the Space Launch System, managing power distribution, signal integrity and onboard computing...
Semiconductors Demand Trillion‑scale Cleanliness Beyond Human Vision
#Technology #Thread #Semiconductor #Manufacturing #Trillion The Semiconductor Visualizing Trillion: 1/ - I Was Once Asked How Small A Contaminant Has To Be To Ruin A Chip. - My Answer: "Smaller Than A Speck Of Dust And A Million Times More Invisible." - That Is...
Interface Issues Appear in Advanced Packages, Not Originate There
In advanced packages, the interface is where problems show up, but rarely where they begin. https://t.co/Tefs3KJnTc #semiconductor #advancedpackaging #semiconductortest #interface
EPC Expands Portfolio of 100V Integrated GaN Power Stage ICs
Efficient Power Conversion (EPC) has launched a 100 V GaN power‑stage IC family—EPC23108, 23109, 23110 and 23111—targeted at high‑performance motion and power‑dense platforms such as humanoid robots and drones. Each device integrates high‑side and low‑side eGaN FETs, gate drivers and level‑shifting...
Intel Poised to Surge if Musk's Terafab Materializes
Intel $INTC would jump up more if the market would realize what exactly @elonmusk is about to pull off with Terafab (no I don't invest, just observing, ignore me) https://t.co/Y5iJPsX0w7
Terfab Ranks Among Top Three WFE Spenders for 1GW Compute
Putting Terfab into perspective. Based on stated goals: 1GW of compute requires about 50kwpm of logic, 140kwpm of DRAM, ~30kwpm of NAND, and ~35 kwpm of CoWoS (advanced packaging). That translates to about $30bn of WFE per 1GW produced...
Texas Instruments Leverages Analog Chip Strength as AI Hype Swells
Texas Instruments announced it will limit capital spending to $2‑5 billion annually after a $4.7 billion outlay in 2025, while free cash flow surged 96% to $2.9 billion. The move underscores the company’s bet on analog chips that power AI servers, reinforcing its...
Intel Partners with Musk's Terafab, Signaling Its Decline
Poor, old Intel is reduced to working with Musk. How the once-mighty do fall. Intel says it’s joining Elon Musk’s ‘Terafab’ project https://t.co/kXVUDQWDBf
China Claims 99% Cost Cut for Military‑grade Infrared Chips
China reports 99% cost cut on military-grade infrared chips Researchers have developed a new way to make high-end infrared chips that could slash their cost and boost smartphone cameras, self-driving cars https://t.co/t52LLpN3xK via @scmpnews
Sivers Announces 5G/6G ICs
Sivers Semiconductors has launched the Daybreak 7‑15 GHz beamforming ICs, now generally available for emerging 5G‑Advanced and 6G FR3 applications and defense arrays. The chips deliver industry‑leading broadband transmit power, high efficiency and a low receiver noise figure, while supporting external...
Congress Targets Rare‑Earth Magnets, Threatening US‑China Ties
#MATCHAct very real danger to bilateral relationship, + for US firms facing REE/magnet-related issues. Beijing would respond harshly if some version moves forward. From Coordination to Constraint: Congress Eyes a Memory Squeeze on China—and the World https://t.co/y1sG4ZDOZo https://t.co/oZ3fvm8npl
AI Compute Profits Flow Upstream,
economics of compute: - OEM sells chip + components at 80% margin - neocloud 2-4x multiple expansion running chip - inference co 5-10x multiple expansion selling tokens - consumer gets subsidized inference so net loss for AI co (or shift cost to consumers) compression...
£10.4m UK Project Will Grow Next-Gen Materials
The UK’s Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council has awarded £10.4 million to a five‑year EXPRESS programme led by the Universities of Warwick and Southampton. The project will develop electrochemical electrodeposition techniques, guided by bespoke precursor chemistry, to grow high‑quality transition...
Anthropic Secures TPU Capacity, Signaling Compute Diversification
.@Anthropic inks deal with @Google, @Broadcom for TPU capacity https://t.co/FCwUyLMN3c >> Congrats. Compute restrictions are real and supplier diversity is critical. Inflection point for Google TPUs going beyond @GoogleCloud. #NextGenApps by @LDignan
Questioning Chip's Role Replacing Marvell Backend for TPU
Wasn’t this the chip that supposedly was going to replace $MRVL back end design for TPU?
AMD‑Arm 2014 Opteron A1120 Packs Eight Cortex
I finally got one. @AMD x @Arm in 2014. Opteron A1120, aka AMD Seattle Up to 8x Cortex-A57, 4MB L2, 8MB L3 128-bit DDR3/4-1866 PCIe 3.0 x8 and 2x10GbE https://t.co/w08sMceEPB
Broadcom Expands AI Chip Deal with Google, Anthropic
Broadcom to Supply AI Chips to Google, Computing Capacity to Anthropic in Expanded Collaboration https://t.co/yHCXipodGy
Apple’s Chips Reshape Tech, Windows Remains Biggest Win
Apple's chips are the core of a new landscape, but its biggest win is Windows https://t.co/4r2S3X5l3x https://t.co/cZkkMSXv99
Andreessen Predicts Years‑long Chip Shortage, Investors Weigh Timing
Marc Andressen says there's going to be chip shortages for years to come. Tempted to buy 2377 TT but how do you time it https://t.co/mmAb7yVsW1