Semiconductor News 20251129

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1. DRAM and NAND Prices Surge Over 100%, Severe Price Crisis for Electronics Manufacturers in 2025 DRAM and NAND flash memory prices are expected to jump over 100%, causing the most severe price crisis for electronics manufacturers in 2025. This price spike is attributed to the rapid growth of AI workloads and the availability of memory capacity by data center operators (CSPs) (2-year long-term purchase agreements/LTAs through 2028), indicating a tight supply-demand balance in the memory market and severe cost pressures.
2. Taiwanese Prosecutors Raid Former TSMC Executive for Alleged Trade Secret Leak Taiwanese prosecutors raided the home of a former senior vice president and current Intel employee in connection with an alleged trade secret leak involving TSMC’s 2nm technology. The case demonstrates the extreme secrecy of cutting-edge semiconductor process technology and reflects the growing legal tension over the movement of personnel and protection of technology among the industry’s top companies.
3. Google’s TPU Strategy Poses New Challenge to NVIDIA ‘s GPU Dominance Google’s TPU (Tensor Processing Unit) strategy poses a new challenge to NVIDIA’s GPU dominance in the AI chip market. This is a major move by Google to bring its AI infrastructure in-house through vertical integration and break the NVIDIA-dominated market structure.
4. Rapidus Plans Second Hokkaido Plant for 1.4nm Chips, but Concerns Over Lack of Funds and Timeline Delays Rapidus is reportedly planning a second plant in Hokkaido for the purpose of manufacturing 1.4nm process chips. However, the plans are accompanied by concerns of a growing funding shortfall, and the company has denied any reported timeline delays. This highlights the massive financing challenges faced by Japan’s semiconductor reconstruction projects.
5. NVIDIA May Stop Including VRAM in GPUs Due to Memory Shortage NVIDIA may reportedly stop including VRAM (video RAM) in GPUs due to a severe memory shortage (memory crunch). This action, if taken, would have a significant impact, especially on smaller board partners, and could lead to changes in graphics card manufacturing and supply chains.
6. Samsung Rushes HBM4 Deal with Nvidia for Early 2026Shipments Samsung is rushing to reach a supply agreement with NVIDIA for HBM4 (High Bandwidth Memory 4), a high-performance memory for AI, and is aiming to ship in early 2026 This move is a significant step forward for HBM4, which is indispensable for the AI market. This move is indicative of the intensifying competition for the supply of HBM, which is essential for the AI market, and Samsung’s strong intention to strengthen its position in the HBM market.
7. Surge in AI Workloads Expands Potential for Alternative Memory and Chiplet Technologies The surge in AI workloads is greatly expanding the potential for alternative memory and chiplet technologies as well as existing HBM. Experts argue that the evolution of data center infrastructure demands more advanced packaging and new memory solutions, increasing the opportunities for Taiwanese IC design firms to gain an edge in ASIC development.
8. CSP Signs Long-Term Agreement to Secure Memory Capacity for Two Years through 2028 Cloud service providers (CSPs) are meeting future AI infrastructure needs through a **Long-Term Agreement (LTA)** for two years through 2028 to secure DRAM and NAND memory capacity. The signing of this LTA demonstrates that the structure of the memory market is changing significantly due to AI demand, and that the relationship between suppliers and customers is a long-term one.
9. Panasonic Raises Tantalum Capacitor Prices by 15-30% in Response to Surge in Demand Due to AI Boom The AI boom has led to a surge in demand for tantalum capacitors, which are essential for the stable operation of semiconductor circuits. In response, Panasonic is reportedly raising the price of tantalum capacitors by **15% to 30%**. This price increase indicates that the expansion of AI infrastructure is having a significant impact not only on chips, but also on the supply chain of surrounding passive components.
10. Intel May Manufacture Apple M-Series Chips on 18A-P Nodes in 2027 Intel may reportedly manufacture Apple’s M-series chipson 18A-P nodes in2027. This suggests that Intel may win a major external customer in the foundry business with a leading-edge node (18A) with a technological advantage, which could significantly change the competitive structure of the global foundry market.

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