On the heels of the TSMC Symposium and the Intel Foundry update, Samsung held their Foundry Forum today live in Silicon Valley. As usual it was a well attended event with hundreds of people and dozens of ecosystem partners. The theme was the AI Era which is appropriate. As I have mentioned before, AI will touch most every chip and there… Read More
Synopsys Expands Agreement with Samsung Foundry to Increase IP Footprint
Many credible market analysis firms are predicting the semiconductor market to reach the trillion dollar mark over the next six years or so. Just compare this to the more than six decades it took for the market to cross the $500 billion mark. The projected growth rate is incredible indeed and is driven by fast growing market segments… Read More
Keynote Sneak Peek: Ansys CEO Ajei Gopal at Samsung SAFE Forum 2023
As one of the world’s leading chip foundries, Samsung occupies a vital position in the semiconductor value chain. The annual Samsung Advanced Foundry Ecosystem (SAFE™) Forum is a must-go event for semiconductor and electronic design automation (EDA) professionals. Ajei Gopal, President and CEO of Ansys, has the honor of delivering… Read More
Samsung- full capex speed ahead, damn the downturn- Has Micron in its crosshairs
-Samsung said its not reducing its capex despite downturn
-A clear indication they want to take share/kill Micron & others
-Is the US government subsidizing predatory chip behavior?
-The last US memory chip maker is clearly threatened
Samsung announces worst results in 8 years
Samsung released its earnings which were the… Read More
Samsung Ugly as Expected Profits off 69% Winning a Game of CAPEX Chicken
-Samsung off the same chip cliff as Micron- “No skid marks”
-Samsung may be winning at a game of “Capex Chicken”
-No expectation of recovery any time soon – Consumers weak
-2023 a write off- Recovery will be delayed if spending isn’t
Samsungs worst quarter in 8 years no surprise
Samsung pre… Read More
Samsung Versus TSMC Update 2022
After attending the TSMC and Samsung foundry conferences I wanted to share some quick opinions about the foundry business. Nothing earth shattering but interesting just the same. Both conferences were well attended. If we are not back to the pre pandemic numbers we are very close to it.
TSMC and Samsung both acknowledged that there… Read More
A Memorable Samsung Event
Samsung hosted its first-ever Samsung Tech Week Oct 3-5 with some insightful keynotes and great food. The week led off with Samsung Foundry Forum and a keynote from Foundry president, Si-Young Choi. Attendees at Samsung Foundry’s SAFE Forum were welcomed by Ryan Lee, head of the business’ Design Enablement team. John In-Young… Read More
Micron and Memory – Slamming on brakes after going off the cliff without skidmarks
-Micron slams on the brakes of capacity & capex-
-But memory market is already over the cliff without skid marks
-It will likely take at least a year to sop up excess capacity
-Collateral impact on Samsung & others even more important
Micron hitting the brakes after memory market already impacts
Micron capped off an otherwise… Read More
Samsung Foundry Forum & SAFE™ Forum 2022
It has been an exciting time in the semiconductor industry and the excitement is far from over. Years 2022 and 2023 will be more challenging in many different ways and live activities have just begun. The cornerstones to the semiconductor industry are the foundries so I look forward to the live foundry events coming up in October,… Read More
Intel and the EUV Shortage
In my “The EUV Divide and Intel Foundry Services” article available here, I discussed the looming EUV shortage. Two days ago, Intel announced their first EUV tool installed at their new Fab 34 in Ireland is a tool they moved from Oregon. This is another indication of the scarcity of EUV tools.
I have been tracking EUV system production… Read More


Breker Hosts an Energetic Panel on Spec-Driven Verification