Semiconductor News 20251003

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1. OpenAI’s Stargate Project Drives DRAM Supercycle OpenAI has asked Samsung and SK hynix to supply DRAM for HBM for its large-scale AI infrastructure project, Stargate, which could reach up to 900,000 wafers per month. wafers per month. Samsung and SK hynix are responding to this demand with a new DRAM supply order for their AI infrastructure build-out, which is expected to reach up to 900,000 wafers per month. To address this demand, they are pursuing a strategic alliance to build AI infrastructure.
2. Taiwan Rejects 50-50 Chip Production Sharing Proposal by the U.S. The U.S. government has been pushing for a “50-50 production sharing” arrangement whereby half of the chip production for the U.S. market would be done in the U.S. for TSMC and others, with the aim of strengthening the resilience of the semiconductor supply chain, which has created significant pressure for TSMC. However, the Taiwanese government has formally rejected this chip production sharing proposal. As a result, trade negotiations between Taiwan and the U.S. have been stalled, coupled with an unresolved semiconductor tariff dispute. The U.S. proposal has also raised trade concerns for other countries with manufacturing bases, such as Malaysia.
3. Intel Seeks to Win Rival AMD Customer for Foundry Business Intel has reportedly begun production of its 18A process in Arizona and is very confident in the performance of its upcoming 18A and 14A nodes. With this confidence, Intel is in initial negotiations to secure its long-time nemesis, AMD, as a foundry customer. This represents a major strategic shift for Intel as it seeks to establish itself as a major player in the market by getting serious about its foundry business, which could significantly change the competitive landscape for semiconductor manufacturing.
4. Huge Damage Caused by Samsung’s Former Employees Leaking DRAM Technology to China It was reported that former Samsung employees and others have been indicted and detained on charges of illegally leaking 18nm process DRAM technology to a Chinese company (CXMT). According to Korean media, this technology leakage is estimated to have caused approximately 5 trillion won (approximately 560 billion yen) of damage in the previous year alone. This incident illustrates the importance of protecting confidential technology between nations in the high-tech industry and the serious problems behind the fierce international competition for semiconductor technology, especially China’s strategy of promoting domestic production.
5. Surge in Memory Chip Prices and Pressure to Transition to DDR5 Prices for memory chips (DRAM and NAND) have surged as a result of suppliers’ strategies to curb inventories. In particular, mainstream estimates for DRAM spot prices have risen 5.4%, and further price increases are expected after the Chinese holidays. This market recovery trend is attributed to the massive increase in demand from AI chips (HBM). In addition, the price spike for DDR4 is putting pressure on industrial PC (IPC) companies to accelerate their transition to the newer standard, DDR5.
6. Japan’s Rapidus Secures “Major” US Customers for 2nm Process Japanese semiconductor contract manufacturer Rapidus has reportedly secured several “major” US companies as potential customers for its next-generation 2nm process. In particular, IBM and Tenstorrent are mentioned as strong candidates. This move indicates that Rapidus is seriously accelerating its advanced process competition with existing giant foundries such as TSMC and Intel, and is an important step toward the revival of the Japanese semiconductor industry.
7. Qualcomm Wins Important Licensing Case Against Arm Qualcomm has won a major victory in its long-running licensing dispute with Arm. The U.S. court dismissed Arm’s lawsuit, allowing Qualcomm to continue to use the Oryon core design technology it acquired through its acquisition of Nuvia. The conclusion of this legal battle provides a decisive foundation for Qualcomm to further develop and produce its next generation of chips (such as the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5) based on Arm v9 technology.
8. UMC Asks Suppliers for 15% Price Cut in 2026 UMC (United Microelectronics Corp.) of Taiwan has taken the unusual step of asking suppliers in writing for a significant 15% price cut for 2026. The move is seen as a sign of softening demand or increased market competition, mainly in the mature process node market. As a sign of market realignment in the mature node market, it has attracted industry attention.
9. As Nvidia Struggles in Chinese Market, Huawei Pushes for AI Chip Substitution Due to the impact of U.S. sanctions, Nvidia is struggling in the Chinese market for AI chip sales. In response, China’s Huawei is accelerating its move to fill Nvidia’s market vacuum by using its own AI semiconductor, Ascend, to fill the domestic AI chip shortage. This situation clearly demonstrates that China is reducing its dependence on foreign technologies in the AI sector and promoting its own ecosystem and technological evolution (proprietary evolution).
10. Users are cancelling their subscriptions in response to the steep rise in Xbox Game Pass prices. The price of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate has skyrocketed to $29.99, the price of the entire service has increased by up to 50%, and new plans, Essential, Premium, and Ultimate, have been introduced. The new “Essential,” “Premium,” and “Ultimate” plan structures were introduced. Although Xbox’s president emphasized the profitability of Game Pass, the impact at the consumer level was very significant.

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