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TSMC has announced its intention to expand its investment in advanced semiconductor manufacturing in the United States, pledging an additional $100 billion.

The company already has $65 billion worth of investments into advanced semiconductor manufacturing operations at its fab in Phoenix, Arizona, with TSMC's total investment in teh US expected to reach $165 billion. This expansion includes plans for 3 new fabrication plants, two new advanced packaging plants, and a major R&D team center, with the company said "solidifying this project as the largest single foreign direct investment in US history".

TSMC expects to create hundreds of billions of dollars of semiconductor value for AI and other cutting-edge chips, with TSMC's expanded investment expected to create 40,000 construction jobs over the next 4 years, as well as creating tens of thousands of high-paying, high-tech jobs in advanced chip manufacturing and R&D on US soil.

NVIDIA and Broadcom are reportedly running manufacturing tests on Intel's new 18A process node, showing some much-needed early confidence for the company and its semiconductor business.

In a new report from Reuters, we're hearing that the two tests haven't been reported previously, and indicate that the companies are moving closer to the decision of whether they'll commit hundreds of millions of dollars worth of manufacturing contracts to Intel Foundry Services (IFS).

NVIDIA and MediaTek are TSMC customers, so winning these two chip giants over would be a huge deal for Intel, while its main CPU competitor in AMD, is "also evaluating whether Intel's 18A manufacturing process is suitable for its needs but it was unclear if it had sent test chips through the factory".

TSMC is expected to begin mass production of its next-gen A16 process node in Taiwan by the second half of 2026, and then "connect Taiwan and the United States" by introducing A16 process production at its third factory in Arizona, USA by 2028.

In a new report from UDN, we're learning that TSMC's first wafer fab in Arizona has begun mass production, with TSMC's Q1 2025 board meeting specially held in the Arizona plant to allow board members to receive first-hand knowledge that mass production was achieved at its new plant in the US.

UDN reports that the market believes that TSMC is showing its attention to the US market, and goodwill to the US government and the new Trump administration. TSMC's next-gen A16 process node is the first angstrom (smaller than nano) process node used by TSMC, with the company's nano process technology named the N series (N3, N4, N5, etc).

AI servers have been used in a fraud case that Singapore announced last week, with NVIDIA AI GPUs that were supplied by US companies like Dell, with banned AI chips from entering China according to a government minister on Monday.

Singapore has charged three men with a fraud case involving smuggling NVIDIA AI GPUs from the city-state to Chinese AI firm DeepSeek. Channel News Asia reports that the cases were linked to the alleged movement of NVIDIA chips from Singapore to be used by DeepSeek, "without identifying its source" reports Reuters.

Singapore's Home Affairs and Law Minister K Shanmugam told reporters on Monday that AI servers involved in the case were supplied by Dell Technologies and Super Micro Computer, before they were sent to Malaysia. He said: "whether Malaysia was the final destination... we do not know for a certain at this point" adding that authorities were investigating the case independently after an anonymous tip-off.

Intel has officially delayed the construction of its new Ohio One semiconductor manufacturing site, delaying the launch of its new fab into the next decade.

The company originally planned its Ohio semiconductor fab for 2025, but moved it to 2027-2028 not too long ago, and now that has been pushed back again until at least 2030. The first phase of the Ohio site (Mod 1) will now be completed in 2030, with production starting between 2030 and 2031, while Mod 2 is expected in 2031, with operations in 2032.

Intel's $28 billion Ohio chipmaking factories are located in New Albany, with the semiconductor fab plan changes made so that Intel can align its factory operations with market demand and "manage capital responsibility" said Naga Chandrasekaran, general manager of Intel Foundry Manufacturing in an email to staffers that was shared in a press release.

Thousands of workers are expected to receive notices of firing this week as they are considered "probationary workers," which will result in the CHIPS Act being killed.

Multiple reports have pieced together that the multi-billion-dollar CHIPS Act is currently on the chopping block as departures of hundreds of National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) workers are expected to receive layoff notices this week. NIST workers headed the CHIPS Act by organizing the signatures of multiple companies to receive grants, and according to reports from Bloomberg, Axios, and now Semiconductor Advisors analyst Robert Maire, employees at NIST that have worked less than two years at the agency, including those who have received a promotion, will soon be let go.

As a result, the CHIPS Act will be dissolved, as no one will be left to administer it. Trade tariffs are expected to replace it.

TSMC plans for its 2nd fab in Japan remain unchanged, going against recent Japanese media reports that construction was being delayed at TSMC's new Kumamoto Plant 2 to "within this year".

Japanese media reported earlier today that TSMC's new Kumamoto Fab 2 construction had been delayed from March 2025 to "within this year" but the production time remains unchanged. In response to questions from reporters, TSMC said that JASM's plans for the second wafer production facility in Japan is still happening, but had no further information to share at the time.

TSMC's goal of having its 2nd fab operational and put into production before the end of 2027, with the new Kumamoto Fab 2 plant to make 6nm semiconductor wafers in Japan.

The threat of trade tariffs from President Donald Trump has pressured Apple to invest half a trillion dollars into the United States across the next four years, with the company saying on Monday it will hire as many as 20,000 new workers.

According to a new article by Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, Apple said on Monday that it will be spending $500 billion over the next four years in the US, and at least part of that money will be dedicated to the construction of new server manufacturing facility slated for Houston, a new supplier academy in Michigan, and additional spending being funneled to current US-based suppliers. Notably, Apple pledging this $500 billion comes only days after Apple CEO Tim Cook met with President Trump in the Oval Office.

Trump said shortly after the meeting that Cook is "investing hundreds of billions of dollars," insinuating the company wants to avoid the new tariffs Trump has threatened to implement, which include a 10% tax on items imported from China - the location of where Apple builds the majority of its iPhones and many other products. Gurman writes that Apple's pledge of a $500 billion investment across four years marks the biggest commitment Apple has made to the US to date.

TSMC is reportedly experiencing healthy development progress with its next-gen 2nm process node, with monthly production capacity expected to hit up to 80,000 wafers before the end of the year.

In a new report from UDN, we're learning that TSMC could hit 50,000 to 80,000 wafers per month by the end of the year, with TSMC chairman C.C. Wei mentioning that his company continues to expand its advanced process and advanced packaging capacity in Taiwan. This includes 3nm expansion in Tainan, 2nm expansion in Hsinchu and Kaohsiung, and the expansion of multiple advanced packaging capacity in multiple locations across Taiwan.

TSMC's cutting-edge 2nm process node has reportedly entered an intensive trial production phase, with estimations that its Hsinchu Baoshan plant having a monthly production capacity of 5000 to 10,000 wafers of new 2nm chips, with its Kaohsiung plant starting a small-scale trial production.

President Trump has ensured that semiconductor tariffs on chips imported into the US would increase higher over the course of 2025, with new details on the tariffs shared during a press briefing at Mar-A-Lago.

During the press briefing, President Trump was initially asked about tariffs for the automotive industry, but when pressed about his future plans for semiconductors and pharmaceuticals, President Trump said that the tariffs will "be 25% and higher" and that the tariffs would "go very substantially higher over a course of a year".

The US government will give chip companies the time to relocate their production to the United States, with President Trump adding that "we wanna give them time to come in" and that when the companies "come into the United States and they have their plant or factory here, there is no tariff".

Intel Principal Engineering Program Manager, Joseph Bonetti, says that the rumored TSMC deal is a mistake and that the new Intel 18A process node is more advanced, and that the company has early adopters onboard.

In a now-deleted post on LinkedIn, Bonetti said that Intel is making progress in semiconductor manufacturing and that Intel 18A -- which is destined for its upcoming Panther Lake CPUs -- is nearing completion. Bonetti said that Intel Foundry will prove itself with its own new products, and that early adopters include Microsoft and Amazon.

Bonetti talked about the concerns that Intel 18A might be beaten by TSMC's new N2 process node, noting that both nodes use gate-all-around (GAA) transistors, and that Intel 18A will have the added advantage of backside power delivery. Bonetti said that neither company (Intel nor TSMC) has a "2nm" node right now, but that Intel is on track to have theirs in production sooner than TSMC.

Jim Keller has weighed in on the messy Intel situation, with the legendary chip expert posting on X that he thinks "a great intel is worth $1 trillion".

In a new post on X, Keller said: "you build value by having a great goal and a team that loves working to the goal. Intel built the fastest CPUs on the best process. This is not unlocking shareholder value, it's a fire sale". Pierre Ferragu replied to Keller, saying: "Jim - there a time for dreaming big and a time for rationalizing; preparing ground for the next big thing? Couldn't Intel's chip join the well run Broadcom family, Altera and Mobileye live their lives and Intel foundries become a national asset we protect and turn around?"

Keller replied, saying: "I think a great Intel is worth $1 trillion. Seems a little careless to throw it away".

As reported by Yahoo Finance, NVIDIA has recovered 90% of its market losses, rebounding sharply after the turmoil caused by Chinese AI startup DeepSeek.

DeepSeek's low-cost R1 model sent shockwaves through the global tech sector, triggering a historic selloff that erased nearly $600 billion from NVIDIA's market capitalization in a single day-the largest one-day loss in stock market history. The broader tech sector shed an estimated $1 trillion, while NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang saw his net worth decline by $18 billion overnight.

Now, NVIDIA shares have rebounded to $140 USD, marking a remarkable turnaround from the late-January collapse. While still below the all-time high of $153.13 recorded on January 7, the swift recovery highlights investor confidence in the company's long-term prospects.

TSMC is rumored to be working on acquiring a 20% stake in Intel's wafer foundry services division (IFS) with US giants Qualcomm and Broadcom also investing in the deal to help Intel "get out of the trough".

In a new report from UDN, we're hearing that the supply chain and foreign media are reporting that the main goal of the Trump administration is to increase Intel's wafer manufacturing capacity through TSMC in order to strengthen "Made in America" from President Trump. The US hopes to see TSMC holding a 20% stake in IFS (Intel Foundry Services) through a technology valuation or an actual cash investment.

Qualcomm and Broadcom would be paying for production capacity from Intel's semiconductor fabs, ensuring smooth production of their high-end chips and Made in the USA, also increasing IFS's capacity utilization. UDN continues, reporting that the companies also plan on taking advantage of President Trump's semiconductor tariffs, leveraging the advantages of American companies as landlords and local manufacturing on US soil.

TSMC chairman and CEO Dr. C.C. Wei ruled out acquiring Intel's semiconductor facilities in the US, revealed during the company's Q3 2024 earnings call, and when asked again in January 2025, he refused to comment.

Fast-forward a couple of months and President Trump is back in the White House, and swirling reports of President Trump not supporting US chip factories being owned by foreign entities (like TSMC) and that it is "unlikely" the Trump administration would support a foreign company operating Intel's facilities.

US Vice President JD Vance attended the recent AI Action Summit in Paris where he said that the Trump administration "will ensure that the most powerful AI systems are built in the US with American design and manufactured chips".

TSMC is reportedly planning the construction of a 3rd fab in Arizona by mid-2025, an entire year earlier than planned, and will invite top US officials to a ground-breaking ceremony as early as June 2025.

TSMC is also considering a new CoWoS advanced packaging plant for the US, with TSMC CEO C.C. Wei discussing these decisions with Arizona semiconductor fab executives after its board meeting on Wednesday on US soil: the first time TSMC has hosted a board meeting in the US in its 37-year history.

Construction of TSMC's second fab in Arizona is well underway, with the main fab building completed and clean room installations are now on their way. Equipment move-in is penciled in for the end of Q1 2026, which means we can expect risk production by the end of 2026.

President Trump might not support US chip factories owned by Intel being operated by foreign entities like TSMC, according to White House officials.

The new comments were a response to a Bloomberg report that TSMC would take a controlling stake in Intel's factories at the request of President Trump, with White House officials telling Reuters that the Trump administration supports foreign companies investing and building in the US, but it is "unlikely" to support a foreign company from operating Intel's factories.

Intel has been struggling for years, but there are multiple layers to this situation which analyst Patrick Moorhead beautifully breaks down in a post on X. He said that "having just manufacturing on US soil solves nothing for national security; the IP needs to be on US soil, too. If China attacks Taiwan, they have everything, and Arizona has nothing, and never gets beyond current node".

Ubisoft has released its financial report for the nine months ending December 31, 2024, and it shows a steady decline across the board for the once esteemed company.

Ubisoft was a company once known for its big AAA hits, but it has unfortunately slowly fallen from grace, and the company's recent financial results, along with its stock price, directly reflect that. For the nine months ending December 31, 2024, Ubisoft's revenue was €990 million ($1.07 billion USD), which was down 31.4% year-on-year. Net bookings for the company over that period were down 34.8% and accounted for €944 million ($1.02 billion USD), along with digital net bookings being down 33.8%, or €784 million ($850 million USD). Lastly, back-catalogue net bookings were down 27.7% at €762.3 million ($827 million USD).

Despite these significant declines, GamesIndustry.biz reports Ubisoft remains optimistic about its performance for the next quarter, as it will have released Assassin's Creed: Shadows on March 20, and according to Ubisoft CFO Frederick Duguet, pre-sales for the title are "tracking solidly" and are in-line with Assassin's Creed Odyssey - one of Ubisoft's most successful releases ranking second in terms of revenue behind Valhalla, which was the first Assassin's Creed game to pull in $1 billion in revenue.

President Trump is putting pressure on TSMC after saying he would have semiconductor tariffs, accusing TSMC of stealing the United States' chip business.

President Trump told reporters at The White House: "Right now, everything is made in Taiwan practically. Almost all of it, a little bit in South Korea. But everything, almost all of it is made in Taiwan. Taiwan took our chip business away. We had Intel, we had these great companies that did so well. It was taken from us. And we want that business back. We want it back in the United States. If they don't bring it back, we're not going to be very happy".

A TSMC spokesperson said: "We don't break down [capital expenditures] by market but some will apply to Arizona, where the second of three planned fabs is currently under construction".

The US government has reportedly provided TSMC with multiple alternatives on how the company can move forward with its facilities in the United States, an option of which includes co-existing with Intel as a foundry business.

President Trump has been clear that his administration won't allow TSMC to go away that easily, pushing his "Made in USA" initiative. In a new post from @Jukanlosreve and a report from DigiTimes, we're learning that the US government has given TSMC three different alternatives on how Taiwan could ensure its presence in US markets.

This mostly includes promoting US semiconductor domestic production, and helping Intel from drowning. We only just reported that SMC is reportedly working on a new advanced packaging facility in the US, but the other alternatives include TSMC investing in Intel Foundry and could see a technology transfer occur, meaning that TSMC could lose its market dominance.