As the US recalibrates its tariff rates for global trade partners, Taiwan is striving to secure a rate below 25%, arguing that its economic and strategic contributions rival or even surpass those of other nations. Brazil is facing a sharp increase in tariffs to 50%, while Japan and South Korea have been set at 25%. Taiwan's tariff rate, however, has yet to be announced.

Wistron is ramping up its artificial intelligence efforts in the US, announcing a US$45 million investment to expand production at its California facility. The company's board approved the funding on July 16, 2025, which will be allocated to WisLab EMS Corporation, a wholly owned subsidiary of Wistron. The investment is intended to enhance the site's capacity for developing, testing, and manufacturing advanced AI servers.

The Trump administration's decision to allow Nvidia's H20 chips back into China has triggered a surge of urgent orders from major Chinese cloud providers, reviving not only Nvidia's outlook but also lifting sentiment across the AI semiconductor ecosystem. Peripheral chipmakers, especially IC design firms, are seeing fresh demand and renewed confidence as the supply chain recalibrates.

While Intel's new CEO Lip-Bu Tan is still pondering how to find a path forward for its foundry business, US-based semiconductor foundry giant GlobalFoundries (GF) recently announced plans to acquire chip developer MIPS Technologies at an undisclosed price and enter the RISC-V processor market.

Generative artificial intelligence (AI) and autonomous driving technologies are fueling structural growth in multilayer ceramic capacitors, with AI servers and automotive electronics driving demand for miniaturized, high-capacity components.

The parade of power players to Lei Jun's door tells a story. Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong, Qualcomm CEO Cristiano Amon, and Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang have all made the pilgrimage to meet with Xiaomi's founder and CEO during their China visits. This isn't a coincidence — it's recognition of where the real gravity now lies in China's innovation landscape.

Samsung Electro-Mechanics Co. (Semco) is ramping up development of advanced multilayer ceramic capacitors (MLCC) as demand surges from artificial intelligence (AI) servers and automotive systems, betting that breakthroughs in ceramic powder technology will give it an edge over Chinese rivals.

A tight supply of DDR4 DRAM has triggered a buying spree. Goldkey Technology chairman Vicky Tseng said that since May and June 2025, DDR4 spot prices have skyrocketed more than 100%, while DDR5 has also shown a mild upward trend.

Robotics is consistently displaying its potential for success as the industry undergoes a structural transformation. The demand for robotics has grown due to labor shortages and rising costs, especially after AI's integration. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang views humanoid robots as a key to physical AI implementation.

Trust technology provider Gogolook has announced a strategic alliance with cloud service distributor MetaAge to expand its footprint in the high-value enterprise cybersecurity and anti-scam market.

There is no question that AI and cloud computing have been rapidly revolutionizing the technology landscape. From capacity expansion and energy pressure to cooling innovations, data centers are no longer just digital infrastructure—they have become the core battleground shaping future tech competitiveness, resource allocation, and industrial development.

Wistron president and CEO Jeff Lin stated that AI servers represent a rigid demand and are not affected by reciprocal tariffs. However, mature consumer products such as notebooks and smartphones are likely to face challenges due to tariff impacts. Lin also revealed that in response to the US reciprocal tariffs, Wistron has prepared multiple contingency plans labeled Plan A, B, C, D, and E, although details of the tariffs remain unclear and customers have yet to provide definitive instructions.

Taiwan must move beyond its traditional OEM (original equipment manufacturing) and ODM (original design manufacturing) model and focus on exporting complete systems, particularly in the rapidly growing aging-related technology sector, according to National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) Minister Cheng-wen Wu.

As AIoT technology deepens its application across industrial sectors, networking and cybersecurity brand Cisco has partnered with Genesis to launch the "AIoT Sustainable Innovation R&D Center" in the Asia New Bay Area, becoming one of Taiwan's most comprehensive end-to-end validation sites.

Nvidia's landmark surge to a US$4 trillion market capitalization on July 10 has reverberated across the global tech landscape—but nowhere more profoundly than in Taiwan. As Nvidia cements its dominance in the AI infrastructure race, Taiwanese suppliers at the heart of its hardware ecosystem are posting record-breaking results.

The advent of the personal computer (PC) provided an opportunity for Taiwan's manufacturing services to further evolve.

With Nvidia's GB200 series products entering volume shipments starting in the second quarter of 2025, the GB300 has also begun its delivery recently, as Dell chairman and CEO Michael Dell has unveiled that his company's GB300 NVL72 products have officially been delivered to AI cloud computing provider CoreWeave for use. This indirectly confirms that the GB300, originally expected to start small-volume shipments in the third quarter of 2025, has not been affected by the volume ramp-up of GB200 and is shipping according to plan.

The free trade agreement (FTA) between the US and South Korea has now become irrelevant under Donald Trump's administration. Taiwan's tech products also face the possibility of losing the ITA and ITA 2 tariffs-free benefits granted under the WTO framework. Trump's tariff threat can be understood as a step to force Seoul to share the cost of stationing US troops in South Korea. But what does Trump want from Taiwan in the tariffs game? TSMC is already constructing wafer fabs and an R&D center in the US. Does Trump want AI server makers to set up assembly lines in the US, and for the Taiwan currency to sharply appreciate against the greenback?