Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company

According to 36Kr, TSMC-backed chip maker VIS inaugurated its first advanced wafer fab in Singapore via the VSMC joint venture with NXP, with production underway and a plan for a second factory. The plant began trial production in June, taking 18 months from groundbreaking to trial, and VIS says the first batch yield will be at least 99%. Mass production is planned for early 2027, and the facility will supply an intermediary packaging layer for Nvidia, Google, and Broadcom, with TSMC owning about 19% of VIS.

NVIDIA is collaborating with German equipment manufacturer SCHMID and other suppliers to develop glass-based packaging and equipment for AI GPUs. The strategic initiative aims to increase high bandwidth memory capacity and boost data processing speeds for next-generation artificial intelligence hardware. Key technical challenges such as through-glass via metalization remain, while industry leaders discuss broader adoption.

According to CNBC Technology, a McKinsey and SEMI Foundation report projects a US shortage of up to 157,000 semiconductor workers by 2030, with significant hiring difficulties and a reliance on a small pipeline of engineering graduates. Samsung plans to start advanced logic production at two Taylor, Texas fabs later this year as part of a $35 billion Texas buildout expected to create about 3,500 jobs, while Micron is building America’s first advanced memory fab in Boise set to open next year and another in Clay, New York. The report notes only 3% of US engineering graduates enter semiconductors annually and that 73% of chip employers report difficulty filling engineering roles.