Samsung might be the most unusual company on earth because it is difficult to decide what kind of company it actually is. To most consumers, Samsung means smartphones, televisions, refrigerators. Yet the name also appears on apartment towers, cargo ships, hospital equipment, insurance policies, construction projects, and… Read More
Comparing Advanced Packaging from TSMC, Intel Foundry, and Samsung Foundry
Advanced semiconductor packaging has become essential to improving computing performance as conventional transistor scaling grows more difficult and expensive. Instead of manufacturing an entire processor as one large monolithic die, chipmakers can divide it into smaller chiplets and combine logic, memory, input/output… Read More
The Twelve-Month Rule Does Not Describe a New Fab
By Nikhil Shah
Capital spending is often treated as if it becomes semiconductor capacity about twelve months later. That can be a useful rule for equipment installed in an existing fab. It is a poor description of a new fab built from the ground up.
I tested the distinction using five advanced-node projects in the United States where… Read More
DAC 2026 See Analog Bits TSMC N2P IP portfolio and meet with its engineering experts!
Analog Bits, Inc. is an established provider of mixed-signal semiconductor IP that integrates into advanced system-on-chip (SoC) designs to enable intelligent energy and power management. Its full portfolio of IP blocks includes precision clocking macros, power and temperature sensors including LDO and regulators, programmable… Read More
Synopsys and Samsung Foundry Extend AI-Driven Design Collaboration for Advanced 2nm and Multi-Die Systems
At SAFE Forum 2026, Synopsys announced significant advancements in its collaboration with Samsung Foundry, expanding AI-powered design, verification, test, and IP solutions for Samsung’s most advanced process technologies. The announcement underscores the growing importance of electronic design automation (EDA), … Read More
ASML High-NA EUV is Not Ready for High-Volume Production
Contrary to the popular press, ASML High-NA EUV is not ready for logic production yet—and it may never be, at least not in the form originally envisioned. If you remember how long it took conventional EUV to become production-worthy—arguably 5–10 years—this should not come as a surprise. More importantly, this is no longer just… Read More
Global 2nm Supply Crunch: TSMC Leads as Intel 18A, Samsung, and Rapidus Race to Compete
The semiconductor industry is in the midst of a structural supply challenge that’s tightly coupled to exploding demand for advanced chips, especially those used in AI, HPC, and next-generation mobile and consumer devices. At the center of this vortex is the 2nm class of manufacturing technology, representing one of the most … Read More
TSMC vs Intel Foundry vs Samsung Foundry 2026
The global semiconductor industry sits at the foundation of modern technology, powering everything from smartphones and cloud data centers to artificial intelligence, automobiles, and national defense systems. At the center of advanced chip manufacturing are three major players: TSMC, Samsung Foundry, and Intel Foundry… Read More
Memory Matters: The State of Embedded NVM (eNVM) 2025
Make a difference and take this short survey. It asks about your experience with embedded non-volatile memory technologies. The survey is anonymous, and the results will be shared in aggregate to help the industry better understand trends: 2025 Embedded Non-Volatile Memory Survey.
We are now in the AI era where data is the lifeblood… Read More
Musk’s new job as Samsung Fab Manager – Can he disrupt chip making? Intel outside
– Musk chip lifeline to Samsung comes with interesting strings attached
– Musk chose Samsung over Intel-What does that say about Intel?
– Musk will hold sway over Samsung much as Apple/NVDA over TSMC
– Will Musk do a “DOGE” on chip tool makers? How much influence?


ASML and TSMC’s 12-Inch Photomask Initiative: Technical Significance