➀ An inauguration ceremony has been held for a $3.2 billion SiC fab in Chongqing, China, a joint venture between Sanan Optoelectronics and STMicroelectronics.
➁ Sanan holds a 51% stake, with ST holding 49%. The fab is expected to start volume production of 8” SiC ICs in Q4 2025 using ST's SiC process technology.
➂ When fully operational in 2028, the fab will have a capacity of 40k wpm. Sanan will also build an 8-inch SiC substrate facility to supply wafers to the JV under a long-term agreement.
➀ The Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA) reported that January 2025 semiconductor sales reached $56.5 billion, up 17.9% year-on-year compared to January 2024;
➁ Despite a slight decline from December 2024, the global semiconductor market maintained momentum in January, achieving its highest monthly sales total for the month of January;
➂ Sales increased by more than 17% year-on-year for the ninth consecutive month, with a significant increase of 50.7% in sales to the Americas.
➀ China plans to release guidelines encouraging the national use of RISC-V-based chips, according to a Reuters report.
➁ The RISC-V architecture is attractive due to its openness, allowing anyone to freely obtain, learn, modify, and extend it.
➂ RISC-V has been embraced by global companies like Alibaba, Qualcomm, and NVIDIA, contributing to its rapid development.
➀ The Chinese government is shifting its focus from x86 and Arm CPUs to promote RISC-V chips, aiming to reduce reliance on foreign technologies.
➁ The new policy is expected to be announced soon, marking the first official government push for RISC-V adoption in China.
➂ Chinese companies like Alibaba and Nuclei System Technology are investing in RISC-V, and the technology is gaining traction in the country.
➀ The investor community is in a state of uncertainty about Intel's future;
➁ TSMC's preference for building its own fabs over taking over Intel's has raised concerns;
➂ The US administration's view on Intel's capability to be a leading-edge domestic supplier is questioned.
➀ IDC forecasts smartphone unit sales to grow 2.3% in 2025, following a 6.1% increase in 2024.
➁ Android is expected to grow 40% faster than iOS in 2025, driven by a 5.6% increase in China, thanks to government subsidies.
➂ Despite iOS's 1.9% decline in China, it is forecast to grow globally by 1.8% due to strong U.S. growth.
➀ The Trump administration is seeking to tighten export restrictions on advanced AI processors from the U.S. and persuade allies to restrict servicing of tools in China.
➁ The new guidelines, known as the AI Diffusion Rule, limit access to powerful AI processors like Nvidia's H100 GPUs.
➂ The move is met with resistance from the industry, which fears it could harm business interests and accelerate the development of domestic alternatives in China.
➀ In 2024, EV and fuel cell vehicle sales grew by 25% to reach 16.9 million units, with China's market share expanding to 67%;
➁ Tesla maintained its top position in BEV sales, followed by BYD and SAIC-GM-Wuling, which saw significant growth;
➂ BYD dominated the PHEV segment with a 38% market share, and the industry is expected to see consolidation and potential mergers in 2025.
➀ According to a survey report by KISTEP, South Korea's majority of semiconductor technologies have been surpassed by China.
➁ South Korea's level in high integration and low impedance storage chip technology is 90.9%, lower than China's 94.1%.
➂ South Korea's level in high-performance, low-power artificial intelligence chips is 84.1%, still not reaching China's 88.3%.
➃ South Korea's power semiconductor level is 67.5%, while China's is 79.8%.
➄ Both South Korea and China are at 74.2% in advanced semiconductor packaging technology.
➅ South Korea's semiconductor industry has made significant achievements in the past few decades, especially in the field of storage chips.
➆ China's semiconductor industry has developed rapidly in recent years, surpassing South Korea in many key technology areas.
➀ At the recent 61st Munich Security Conference, the organizers published their annual report analyzing the global security situation.
➁ The report focuses on the 'multipolarization' of the world order, which is the widening of divisions between countries known as superpowers.
➂ China is identified as the main supporter of a multipolar world order, potentially benefiting from the U.S.'s withdrawal from international commitments and its alienation of long-standing partners.
➀ This article lists the ten most technologically advanced countries in the world as identified by the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC).
➁ The countries include Japan, South Korea, the United States, Germany, China, Singapore, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and Finland.
➂ The article does not provide a detailed analysis of each country's technological advancements but highlights their overall technological capabilities.
➀ The topic of heating, renovation, and energy has caused dissatisfaction and resignation in society;
➁ Professor Dr. Michael Schaub discusses the current situation and the use of heat pumps;
➂ The cost of converting to a Propan heat pump and the challenges of energy efficiency are addressed.
➀ Multiple SiC-related projects in China have made new progress, including the commencement and production of new projects.
➁ Fastest has accelerated the progress of its SiC electro-control project, aiming to produce 2.5 million sets of synchronizers and 100,000 sets of motor electro-control systems annually.
➂ Tianyi Semiconductor is conducting pilot studies on SiC crystal rod processes.
➃ The project for producing Moissanite and SiC materials in Gongcheng, Guilin, has commenced.
➄ Daye Carbon is set to produce ultra-fine and ultra-pure graphite powder and other products for semiconductor chips and SiC chips.
➅ YiYuan Semiconductor's SiC project is expected to be completed and put into production next year.
➀ Chinese blacklisted chip companies are circumventing US tech export restrictions by using pilot lines in research institutes.
➁ The Chinese State Council instructed major cities and provinces to establish a variety of pilot lines with different specialisms.
➂ Examples include the Hubei Yangtze Pilot-Line Services, JFS Laboratory, and Chip Hub for Integrated Photonics Xplore (CHIPX) in Shanghai Jiao Tong University.
➀ Diamond semiconductors are poised to become the future king of semiconductor materials due to their exceptional physical properties like hardness, acoustic velocity, thermal conductivity, and Young's modulus.
➁ Diamond semiconductors are highly suitable for power semiconductors due to their excellent dielectric breakdown strength, high thermal conductivity, and high-frequency operation capability.
➂ Japan is leading in the research and development of diamond semiconductor materials, with companies like Orbray and Saga University making significant breakthroughs.
➃ Diamond semiconductors have potential applications in communication satellites, nuclear power, and quantum computing.
➄ The United States and Europe are also actively investing in diamond semiconductor research and development, with companies like Diamond Foundry and DIAMFAB making advancements.
➅ China is also making progress in diamond semiconductor research and development, with companies like Hefeng Diamond and Shangtian Xuan Semiconductor Technology Co., Ltd. leading the way.
➀ The semiconductor industry is witnessing a surge in investment and expansion of advanced packaging facilities;
➁ This surge is driven by the growing demand for high-performance computing and other applications;
➂ Key players are significantly expanding their capacity with the aim of substantial production increases by 2025.
➀ OECD 预计到 2050 年，日本和意大利的退休人口与工作人口比例将分别达到 81 和 74；
➁ 中国和韩国预计将是最快进入老龄化社会的两个国家，中国受到独生子女政策的影响，而韩国则面临低生育率问题；
➂ 韩国年轻一代面临经济挑战，社会结构传统上分层，特别是对女性来说难以应对。
➀ The stock market's reaction to DeepSeek's announcement was significant, with Nvidia's shares dropping 17%.
➁ There is uncertainty regarding the veracity of DeepSeek's claims about the computing power and GPUs used for their R1 model.
➂ Despite skepticism, DeepSeek's open-source model could democratize AI, making it more accessible and potentially leading to lucrative applications.
➀ Intel's Core Ultra 5 230F has been officially unveiled and is confirmed to be exclusive to China.
➁ The Core Ultra 5 230F has a ten-core configuration with higher frequencies and slightly more cache than the Core Ultra 5 225(F).
➂ The CPU's specifications are altered manually by Intel, but it is unclear if this will affect its performance.
➀ Country Garden, a major Chinese property developer, lost $27.5 billion in 2023, marking the second largest loss by a listed Chinese company after Evergrande's $94 billion loss in 2021.
➁ The ongoing crisis in the Chinese real estate sector is having ripple effects across other business sectors and is a symbol of broader economic challenges and reduced domestic demand.
➂ Foreign direct investment in China decreased in 2023, indicating a potential crisis of confidence in the country.
