Latest Semiconductor News Update on Dec 10 to 16, 2023

Wi-Fi 7 set for full certification in early 2024

The Wi-Fi Alliance announced that the Wi-Fi 7 specification will be finalized by the end of the Q1 2024. The Wi-Fi Alliance said: "Wi-Fi CERTIFIED 7 based on IEEE 802.11be technology will be launched before the end of the first quarter of 2024. Wi-Fi 7 devices have now entered the market, and Wi-Fi CERTIFIED 7 will promote global interconnection and bring advanced Wi-Fi performance into the next era of connected devices."

Wi-Fi 7 is becoming a bright spot in wireless connectivity, offering speeds of up to 40Gbit/s. For most people, it is a strong alternative to traditional wired Ethernet.

U.S. Military Supplier BAE Systems first to get funding from Biden Administration

The U.S. Department of Commerce has announced approximately $35 million in initial funding for BAE Systems to modernize the Microelectronics on Monday.

The company expects to use the grant to quadruple its domestic production of chips used in F-15 and F-35 fighter jets as well as satellites and other defense systems. Actually, this grant is designed to help ensure a more secure supply of parts and components critical to the United States and its allies. The move was meant to underline the government's concern for national security.

Bosch to cut 1500 roles in Germany by end of 2025

Automotive supplier Bosch said Monday (Dec 11) it plans to cut up to 1500 jobs at two German sites making vehicle transmissions. A company spokesman said Bosch's labor representatives were in close contact with the company regarding any job cuts and that the works council would be involved before any final decisions were made. In addition, the layoffs may affect workers at Bosch's plants at Feuerbach and Schweiberdingen in southwestern German.

Nvidia team up with Intel to produce chips?

Colette Kress, CFO of NVIDIA, hinted at the UBS Global Technology Conference that NVIDIA would not rule out entrusting Intel to manufacture new generation chips, which means it may break the current situation of TSMC's exclusive OEM of NVIDIA AI chips. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang has also bluntly stated that he is open to cooperation with Intel.

Data from research institutions show that Nvidia is an important partner of TSMC in advanced processes and advanced packaging. Legal experts estimate that Nvidia will contribute approximately 6% to TSMC’s revenue in 2022, so the legal person believes that once Intel steps in to take orders, it will not only affect TSMC's high-end process orders, but may also trigger a price war due to industrial competition.

Fujitsu to sell chip packaging arm to Japan Investment Corp (JIC)

Fujitsu is to sell its 50% stake in chip packager Shinko Electric Industries for $2.4 billion to a consortium led by the state-backed Japan Investment Corp (JIC) for 684.9 billion yen. Information shows that Shinko Electric Industries is listed on the Prime Market of the Tokyo Stock Exchange with a valuation of approximately 750 billion yen. According to data from Techno Systems Research, the company ranks as the fourth largest semiconductor packaging company in the world this year, accounting for 9.2% of the global market, and its customers include global semiconductor manufacturers such as Intel and AMD.

Intel shows off backside power and stacked transistors at IEDM

At IEDM 2023 (2023 IEEE International Electronic Devices Conference), Intel researchers demonstrated a 3D stacked CMOS transistor that combines backside power supply and direct backside contacts, sharing the expansion path for recent backside power supply R&D breakthroughs (such as backside contacts), and was the first to successfully achieve large-scale monolithic 3D integration of silicon (Si) transistors and gallium nitride (GaN) transistors on the same 300 mm wafer rather than in a package.

Transistor scaling and backside powering are key to meeting the world's exponentially growing demand for more powerful computing power. Intel has always been committed to meeting the demand for computing power, indicating that its technological innovation will continue to promote the development of the semiconductor industry and remain the cornerstone of Moore's Law.

PSMC builds factory in Japan to accelerate automotive chip

Power Semiconductor Manufacturing (PSMC) plans to invest 800 billion yen (US$5.5 billion) in a joint venture with financial group SBI Holdings to build a factory in Ohira, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan. The company will use its new factory in Japan as a springboard to significantly expand its automotive semiconductor business.

In the first phase, the company will invest 420 billion yen to mass-produce 12-inch wafers at a monthly scale of 10,000 wafers starting in 2027. The goal is to produce 40,000 wafers per month when the factory is fully operational in 2029. The Japanese government is considering providing subsidies of up to 140 billion yen.