August was truly a month of “change and challenge” for the technology industry. In the AI and semiconductor sectors in particular, we saw significant changes in corporate strategies and technological developments as trade friction between the U.S. and China intensified. In the video game industry, information about highly anticipated new releases continued to emerge, heightening players’ expectations.
In this article, we present the Top 10 news stories of the past month that are particularly noteworthy. Let’s take an in-depth look at market trends, the strategies of key companies, and the technological advancements that will shape the future.
1. more intervention by the U.S. government in the semiconductor industry: the impact of Intel’s support and high tariffs
The Trump administration has made it clear that it is strongly promoting domestic production of semiconductors. It has indicated that it may impose tariffs as high as 300% on semiconductor products not manufactured in the U.S. The U.S. Secretary of Commerce has stated that building factories in the U.S. will be exempt from 100% of the tariffs. This is a strong inducement to domestic manufacturing.
As part of this policy, the U.S. government has agreed to invest 1.3 trillion yen (about $8.9 billion) in Intel and acquire a 9.9% stake. Intel has also secured a $2 billion investment from the SoftBank Group, bringing the total support to a massive sum.
In addition, NVIDIA and AMD have reportedly reached an “unprecedented agreement” to pay the U.S. government 15% of the revenue from chip sales to China. This is a measure taken in response to U.S. export restrictions to China and illustrates the reality that geopolitical tensions have a direct impact on corporate profits.
2. SK Hynix to become a DRAM market leader: HBM and QLC NAND innovations
SK Hynix has reshaped the power structure of the DRAM industry, which had been dominated by Samsung for many years. According to reports, SK Hynix has broken Samsung ‘s 30-year dominance of DRAM, and Samsung is facing its biggest ever drop in market share.
This is due to SK Hynix’s first-mover advantage in the high bandwidth memory (HBM) market for AI. The company is reportedly raising the price of HBM4 by as much as 70%, maximizing its dominant position in the HBM market by charging a high premium for prior deliveries.
SK Hynix also continues to innovate in NAND flash technology, having developed the world’s first 321-layer QLC NAND, which is scheduled for commercial deployment in the first half of 2026. In addition, SK Hynix is working with SanDisk to standardize the High Bandwidth Flash Memory (HBF) standard and plans to begin providing samples in the second half of 2026. This is a move that will strengthen the collaboration between the two companies in next-generation memory technology.
3. 2nm Technology Development and Security Issues at TSMC: Movement to Eliminate Chinese Equipment
TSMC is aggressively pursuing the development and mass production of 2nm technology, the most advanced process, with plans to have four 2nm plants in operation by 2026, producing 60,000 wafers per month, and yields on the 2nm process are already reported to be over 60%.
However, cutting-edge technology also comes with security risks: a former employee was detained in an incident involving the leak of confidential information on 2nm technology, and Tokyo Electron in Japan was also the subject of a search. This highlights the importance of protecting technical information in the semiconductor industry and the intensity of international technical competition.
Furthermore, TSMC has reportedly discontinued the use of Chinese equipment from 2nm production amid looming U.S. regulations, indicating a situation where geopolitical tensions are having a direct impact on the supply chain. TSMC is also phasing out 6-inch wafer production, which is less profitable, and encouraging customers to migrate to larger wafers.
4. evolution of NVIDIA’s AI chip strategy and adaptation to the Chinese market
NVIDIA has maintained its leadership position in the AI chip market while remaining flexible to changing international conditions. To comply with U.S. export regulations, the company is developing a performance-limited version of its Blackwell AI chip for the Chinese market, the B30A, with test samples reportedly likely to be available in September. This demonstrates NVIDIA’s strategy of striking a balance between regulations and market needs.
For next-generation AI data center technology, NVIDIA’s Rubin Ultra platform is expected to lead the immersion cooling boom by 2027-2028. The NVIDIA Rubin Ultra platform is already in prototype production at TSMC and will be the focus of much attention in the future.
On the other hand, there are reports that NVIDIA’s GPU software is making it difficult for China to transition to domestically produced AI chips, revealing the reality that the strong ecosystem built by NVIDIA poses a major challenge to China’s de-NVIDIA strategy.
NVIDIA is also focusing on the field of AI-based robotics and plans to support humanoid robot development through collaboration with Infineon by announcing a new semiconductor with 7.5 times higher AI processing performance for AI robots.
5. explosive growth of AI market and huge investment competition among major tech companies
The AI market continues to experience explosive growth and massive competition for investment by major tech companies. Capital expenditures by U.S. tech giants reached a record total of $14 trillion for AI from April to June 2025.
Microsoft is celebrating its 50th anniversary, has joined the “quadrillion dollar club,” and its expansion of AI services is reportedly contributing to its strong quarterly results. OpenAI, on the other hand, remains in the red despite $12 billion in annual sales and is reportedly considering raising an additional $30 billion in funding. Nscale, Aker, and OpenAI also plan to establish Stargate Norway, an AI gigafactory with 100,000 NVIDIA GPUs.
Google Cloud has officially released its new AI video model and added it to Vertex AI. Google also announced bold plans to build a small modular reactor in Tennessee to generate 50 MW of power by 2030; Razer is also accelerating its AI investments by opening a state-of-the-art AI center in Singapore.
Globally, in China, the number of generated AI users has surpassed 600 million and the AI ecosystem is rapidly expanding, while in South Korea, the “AI 100 trillion fund” is promoting venture investment and intensifying competition in AI technology development.
6. AMD’s Offensive in the CPU Market and Outlook for Next-Generation Platforms
AMD is increasing its presence in the CPU market. The company has secured leading positions in all segments of its server, workstation, and consumer CPU lineup and calls itself “the fastest processor in the world.
For the next generation AM6 socket, the company plans to increase the pin count by 22% to 2100 pins while maintaining the same size as the current AM5, raising expectations for future performance gains. The company is also preparing a 16-core Ryzen 9000X3D CPU with 192MB of L3 cache and a 200W TDP.
In terms of x86 processor share in the second quarter of 2025, AMD reached a record 41% in the server segment, indicating that Intel’s longstanding dominance is slowly eroding.
7. Japan’s Rapidus, the Challenge of 2nm Mass Production and National Strategy
Rapidus, a Japanese next-generation semiconductor manufacturing company, is entering a critical phase toward mass production of its 2nm process. Researchers have pointed out that the company is at a critical juncture, with only two years remaining until the start of 2nm volume production, and that if it fails to achieve its goal in this period, it could lose its technological edge to Taiwan’s TSMC and South Korea’s Samsung.
Rapidus is looking to streamline its design-to-manufacturing process by implementing Siemens’ Teamcenter for semiconductor lifecycle management. It is also reported that the company is using AI as an essential tool for its contract business to improve the efficiency of 2nm design.
The government is strongly supporting national strategic projects such as Rapidus, and efforts to revive Japan’s semiconductor industry, which is facing a difficult road ahead, will be closely watched.
8. signs of a big hit “Battlefield 6”: record beta participation and game experience
The highly anticipated new Battlefield 6 game was the subject of two open beta weekends in August prior to its October 10 launch. The beta test was a phenomenal success, reportedly attracting more than 300,000 concurrent players on Steam, the most players in Battlefield series beta history. More than 92 million hours of total play time and over 420 million matches were played, demonstrating the high profile of the game.
The game’s technical requirements have also received attention: Battlefield 6 is designed to rely heavily on CPUs with 3D V-Cache, and there are reports that the AMD Ryzen 9800X3D outperforms the Intel Core i9-14900K.
On the other hand, TPM 2.0 and Windows Secure Boot may be required to launch the game, and EA has faced criticism from the player community for this requirement.
9. renew Apple’s product portfolio and maintain profitability
Apple reported strong results in its latest quarterly earnings report for the third quarter of fiscal year 2025, with quarterly sales reportedly hitting an all-time record since December 2021. However, the company is also facing challenges from the U.S. tariff policy, which has increased tariff costs to 170 billion yen.
The product strategy plans to raise prices again on the iPhone 17 series, but may justify that price increase by offering storage upgrades.
In addition, Apple’s first folding iPhone is scheduled to be launched in 2026, intensifying competition among hinge suppliers. In addition, major lineup changes are reportedly planned for the iPhone 18, including the elimination of the entry-level model and the introduction of folding and lower-priced models.
Apple is also expanding its investment in the U.S., announcing an additional $600 billion in investments. This is an increase of $100 billion from previous commitments to Trump and is intended to underscore the company’s commitment to U.S. domestic industry.
10. recovery of the global semiconductor market and new geopolitical risks
The global semiconductor market is on the road to recovery: in the second quarter of 2025, the market size reached $179.7 billion, up 7.8% from the previous quarter, and global semiconductor sales grew 19% year over year in June, marking the 20th consecutive month of positive growth.
However, this recovery is not one-dimensional. Semiconductor investment is entering a plateau, and major semiconductor equipment manufacturers such as Tokyo Electron and Screen are reportedly showing signs of slowing.
In particular, U.S. trade friction with China and semiconductor tariff policies continue to create uncertainty in global supply chains. In the semiconductor market during the July-September period, a clear dependence on demand for AI and a slow recovery for smartphones also emerged as structural issues.
Conclusion.
August 2025 was a truly turbulent month for the technology industry: while AI and semiconductors continue to drive the market, U.S. protectionist policies and geopolitical tensions are having a major impact on supply chains and company business strategies: massive support and high tariffs for Intel, SK Hynix’s breakthrough in the DRAM market, TSMC’s cutting-edge technology development and information leakage, and NVIDIA’s strategy for the Chinese market, all companies are focusing on new technology development and market development to respond to the wave of change and are competing intensely.
The success of major games like Battlefield 6 has also spurred demand for high-performance hardware, fueling the growth of CPU makers like AMD, and Apple is also trying to maintain its market dominance through a revamped product portfolio and huge investments in the U.S.
Keep an eye on these developments over the next month and beyond. As the pace of technological innovation accelerates and geopolitical factors become more complex, what does the future hold for the technology industry? We will continue to follow the forefront.
