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TAP TIMESTM Dr. William Hugle Renaissance Man September 2026
TAP TIMES - CONTENTS - SEPTEMBER 2026 - PAGE 2 Dr. William Hugle, renaissance man. In the early days of the semiconductor industry, Bill Hugle was everywhere. He was one of a trio of SEMI co-founders and a founder of chip maker Siliconix. Today, his impact on the industry is largely forgotten. Ron Iscoff, 3. Backend equipment: rewiring the supply chain. According to a new report from the Yole Group, the back-end equipment market is expected to reach $9.5 billion in 2026 and to grow with a CAGR of 6.3% by 2031, 15. Move over DRAM, Sandia’s ETCRAM is re- writing the rules. Researchers at the lab have developed a new type of memory said to achieve 100 times higher precision than existing memory technology, 23. World Semiconductor Trade Statistics (WSTS) confirms bright Spring forecast. WSTS reports that the global semiconductor market more than doubled in the first half of this year to $702 billion, representing a 102 percent increase year-over-year, 29. AI for assembly/test: Old with just a new label? In this special article, Tara Buchler of JBF consulting explains the challenges of using AI in semiconductor manufacturing, 45. NEWS 14-AI drove back-to-back record quarter equipment billings 18-All-solid-state batteries entering validation phase 20-Power chip market for xEVs to hit $14.5 billion by 2031 21-Top five NAND Flash brands rise 77% Q/Q in Q226 22-Michael Robbins named SIA chief executive officer 24-SRC launches SPARC program 25-Satellite launch market to reach $40.4 billion by 2031 27-Energy security through more sustainable batteries 28-Semiconductor market records exceptional growth 31-iPhone Pro 18 materials cost expected to surge 40% 33-Bacteria employed to create living transistors at MIT 35-Stanford chemists find a new path to luminescence 36-DRAM, NAND Flash to account for 68% of spending 38-Chinese national pleads guilty to export violations 39-NVIDIA’s Jensen Huang named CEO of the Year 39-Chips to reach $1.6 trillion this year 40-SK hynix breaks ground at W. Lafayette, Indiana plant 41-Micron pours first concrete at upstate New York fab 42-GB300 rack-scale solutions will drive NVIDIA sales 44-Historic global growth presents challenges 48-Optical transceiver market worth $112 billion by 2031 Advertisers and Events, 22 — Cover description, 24
TAP TIMES - SEPTEMBER 2026 - PAGE 3 Remembering Dr. William B. Hugle, Silicon Valley Pioneer efore there was Intel, and before there was Fairchild Semiconductor, there were cornfields and cherry orchards stretch- ing as far as the eye could see in the The Valley of Heart’s Delight. There is also a small cadre of men, whose names will be forever intertwined with the history of Silicon Valley. Their names are legend A few, who have become legends: Robert Noyce, Gordon Moore, and Andy Grove were all part of Intel. Let’s not forget Char- lie Sporck, cigar-smoking CEO of National Semiconductor. Add Walter Jeremiah “Jerry” Sanders IV, the rambunctious CEO of AMD known for his quote, “Real men have fabs,”who cele- brated his 90th birthday on September 12. Often forgotten as part of Silicon Valley’s founding elite is Dr. William Bell Hugle. In the beginning Bill Hugle, whose name did not afford him the reverence enjoyed by the Noyce team, was more than a pivotal character in the amazing, international success of Silicon Valley and the SEMI organization. He was there, like a few other pioneers, at the very beginning of a worldwide industry that is now exceeding $1 trillion in sales. Bill Hugle, with his wife Frances, were the cofounders of the semiconductor company Siliconix. Bill was also, along with others from the in- dustry, the founder of Semiconductor Equipment and Materials International, Before there was Fairchild Semiconductor and its many, many spinoffs, there were rows and rows of corn in Silicon Valley.. (SEMI), the trade organization representing makers of semiconductor equipment and the originators of SEMICON West, the annual trade show. Builders of many companies Bill, with Frances, was also responsible for many of the companies, such as Hugle Industries, which the pair started together, almost all in Sil- icon Valley. William Hugle was born on March 30, 1927 in Cincinnati, Ohio. The early years of Silicon Val- ley also belong to his wife, Frances Sarnat Hugle, born in New York City, and raised in Chi- cago. They met when both were students at the Uni- versity of Chicago. Bill earned a BSc in chem- istry and physics in 1947 and later graduate degrees from the University of Cincinnati. next page Ron Iscoff, Editor
AP TIMES - SEPTEMBER 2026 - PAGE 4 Hugle (from 3) Frances met Bill at the University of Chicago, where she graduated in 1946 at age 19 with de- grees in philosophy, chemistry and physics. The couple married after graduation. Although later Bill was the visible face of the companies they founded, by most accounts Frances was a brilliant scientist. She died at 40, after a lengthy illness, leaving Bill with their three daughters and one son. Bill suc- cumbed from Cancer at his home in Mesa, Ari- zona in October 2003. He was 76. The early years The early years after their marriage were marked first by a move to Chicago, where they founded Stewart Laboratories (later Stewart-Warner Mi- crocircuits).. In a few years, the Baldwin Piano Co. bought Stewart Labs, where they stayed for another seven years. Their next move took them to West- inghouse. In 1961, they moved to the San Francisco Bay Area, Silicon Valley. When they moved there, the Silicon Valley name was uncommon. Although its origin has been often disputed, it is often cred- ited to Don Hoefler a re- porter for Elec- tronic News. First use? He used the name in a Jan. 1, 1971 article. Frances and Bill Hugle were key observers and participants at the dawning of Silicon Valley. Arriving in what was then “The Valley of Hearts Delight,” soon to be universally known as Silicon Valley, the couple founded chip maker Siliconix on March 5, 1962. An investment by Baldwin Piano Co. The startup was founded with an investment from the Baldwin Piano Co., and was based in Santa Clara, not far from Intel’s headquarters. Their core products were power MOSFETs and power management chips. Siliconix’ name was later changed to Temec, and in 1998, 80% of the company was bought by Vishay Intertechnology. The company is now de- funct. Frances Hugle was named R&D director and chief engineer, focusing on field effect to page 6
TAP TIMES - SEPTEMBER 2026 - PAGE 6 Advertisement Air-Cavity QFN? www.MirrorSemi.com Hugle (from 4) The early success of SEMICON West at the San Mateo Country Fairgrounds required the addition of special tents to handle the overflow exhibitors. If you were at the show, it is likely that Bill Hugle would come over to say hello. This photo is from the 1970s. transistors (FETs). Richard Lee, a former Texas Instruments engineer, became vice president and general manager. Lee is often considered a founder of the company. Bill, who also worked at the company he co- founded, was later fired by Lee after what has been described as “conflicts” with the GM. Exiting Siliconix In less than two years, Lee also fired Frances with the excuse, according to Wikipedia, that she was acting as a spy for her husband. Although few remember the election in 1972 Bill ran for the U.S. House of Representatives as a Democrat from the 16th District, covering Silicon Valley. He withdrew his bid before the primary. Perhaps Bill’s major impact on the semiconductor industry, and one that most people have forgotten was his key role in founding SEMI. In an obituary for Bill that appeared in EE Times shortly after his death, his longtime PR agent, Martin Pierek, wrote about the formation of SEMI. The need for a good showcase While at Hugle Industries, one of several businesses he and his wife founded, Bill became frustrated over the lack of a good showcase for chip making equipment. “This, said Pierek, “inspired him and Fred Kulicke to found SEMI.” Fred was president and CEO of Kulicke & Soffa. K&S at the time was a major developer and seller of backend equipment. In the 1960s, sellers of semiconductor equipment and products had few venues to display their tools, hoping exposure would inspire sales. The chief sales platform then was the WES- CON (Western Electronics Show and Con- vention), which alternated between Ana- heim in Southern California and San Francisco in Northern California. Exhibiting at WESCON, ho- wever, presented several problems for makers of semiconductor equipment. Heat sinks and PCB equipment. This was not the ideal venue. Most of the entrenched exhibitors were oriented to- ward equipment and parts for printed cir- cuit boards such as heat sinks. Semiconductor tools were new to the WES- CON show floor, and, for that matter, largely new to the industry itself. The chip-making tools at the show were seen largely as outsiders. Additionally, many of the attendees were present to hear the technical sessions, spread over several days, that discussed PCB equipment and technology. Home of the cows Additionally, the San Francisco part of WESCON was held at the Cow Palace. It was cavernous and, at times, famous for its covine smell because cattle auctions were held there throughout the year. to page 8
TAP TIMES - SEPTEMBER 2026 - PAGE 8 Hugle (from 6) The San Mateo County Fairgrounds became the first home of SEMI- CON West, where the show remained for decades. Until the San Mateo County Fair- grounds was chosen, the Cow Pal- ace was nearly the only choice for exhibiting semiconductor gear. Sometimes, however, equipment makers would travel east to Boston to exhibit at the IEEE show. An organizing meeting In March 1970 at the IEEE show, equip- ment representatives who were prospec- tive exhibitors, gathered around Hugle’s booth at the show to talk about more sales exposure for semiconductors. They asked IEEE organizers to devote more space, such as a section of the floor to semiconductor equipment. Denied. A second meeting was called on July 15, 1970 on the San Francisco Peninsula to discuss the formation of SEMI and the SEMICON West trade show. Hugle contacted Fred Kulick and won his overwhelming support. Fifty-five com- panies attended this meeting. An additional meeting was held in Palo Alto, Calif., where Bill Hugle was named SEMI’s first president. An additional sup- porter was John Donnelly, co-founder of Thermco, a semiconductor furnace maker. A global industry Today, SEMI is a global industry with loca- tions in North America, Europe and Asia. While SEMICON West is SEMI’s largest and most influential trade show, each year re- gional SEMICONs are held in a number of countries, including SEMICON China, SEMI- CON Taiwan, SEMICON India, SEMICON Europa and others. In 1971, SEMICON West made its debut at the San Mateo County Fairgrounds. The venue seemed perfect. There was one very large building, the Hall of Flowers, named for its annual flower show, and sev- eral outbuildings, smaller and close to the main hall. In addition, there was plenty of free parking next door. It also offered over- flow for exhibitors at Bay Meadows Race Track. Visitors would travel to the parimutual windows from the main hall. Halfway to the nags Visitors traveled by a cable car look-alike, or at least by truck with a mock cable car chassis, from the main site and back. From its debut, the show was a roaring success. perhaps even a victim of its own success. Each year the number of companies that wanted to dis- play their wares grew. As a temporary answer, the Fairgrounds added several silver-domed tents to the main site near the Hall of Flowers. Like a sauna Veterans remember those tents unhappily. The inside temperatures were not unlike a very hot sauna, aided and abetted by the heat generated from the chip-making tools on the floor. Even- tually air conditioning was added to the tents. to page 10
TAP TIMES - SEPTEMBER 2026 - PAGE 10 Hugle (from 8) According to a blogger, revenue from the first SEMICON West came in at $14,406, more than double SEMI’s target of $6,800. Controvery over SEMI The formation of SEMI was controversial. Ben Beall, president of Lindberg Heavi Duty, (a com- petitor to Thermco), denounced the new organi- zation. Beall protested, “Anything attempted with the likes of Hugle, Kulicke and Donnelly is bound to fail.” Applied Materials, then a Hugle competitor, seconded Beall’s declaration. Eventually, history proved the two very wrong in spades. Generally, the show throughout its run has re- flected the U.S. and world economy: When times are good, the show bursts at the seams. When a recession year hit, attendance and the number of exhibitors declined. For decades in San Mateo, visitors were happy with the venue, about halfway between San Jose, the informal capitol of Silicon Valley, and San Francisco. It had everything: hotels galore, many fine restaurants and easy freeway access. Naturally, Bill Hugle was a constant presence at every show, often as an exhibitor and a key part of SEMI’s board. SEMICON West, in most cases, was a cash cow for the organization, limited mostly by the avail- able space for vendors to setup their equipment. The critical component Exhibit space was the critical component for the show’s future success. The maximum number of temporary tents had already been added and there was no more space for more exhibitors. The SEMI board met with the San Mateo County Board of Supervisors in 1995, nearly a quarter century after SEMICON West had debuted. The boards appeared to hold a constructive series of meetings between them. The goal was to have San Mateo County allocate more land to the venue, while explaining to the taxpayers how expansion would benefit them. Ready to move Agreement was not reached, and the SEMI board decided it had to relocate. SEMICON West would be held in 1996 in San Francisco at Mos- cone Center. Moscone was the largest venue in Northern Cali- fornia. It occupied the downtown area which was earlier know as Skid Row, a deteriorating area of bars, cheap hotels, pawn shops and liquor stores. In the last few years, the area around Moscone, which is south of Market Street, had undergone gentrification, which led to the construction of Moscone. The exhibit center was named after San Fran- cisco Mayor George Moscone, who had been as- sassinated while in office. Ironically, Moscone had been against redeveloping the area which now bore his name. Built in 1981, the property covers 87 acres. Today, Mos- cone Center boasts 502,000 square feet. The result was prob- ably mild surprise, since show exhibitors always believed the San Mateo venue would always remain. Residents of the South of Market area, now where Moscone Center is, navigate the streets. This image is from the 1950s. This was a game changer for SEMI. Now instead of a relatively short drive from Silicon Valley to San Mateo, the drive to San Francisco became a serious challenge on the road. Free parking, too, became only a fond memory. next pageYour ad in TAP TIMES means business!
TAP TIMES - SEPTEMBER 2026 - PAGE 11 Hugle (from 10) Although Moscone, then with only two buildings, billed itself as the largest venue in Northern Cali- fornia, it was still too small for all the exhibitors. San Jose as a second venue To compensate for the shortfall, SEMI rented the McEnery Center, a small exhibit hall in downtown San Jose, to host backend displays. This was convenient for some, but others wanted to be in both San Jose and San Francisco ven- ues. SEMI, accordingly adjusted the schedule to operate San Francisco on Monday and Tuesday, both parts on Wednesday, and San Jose on Thursday and Friday.. Finally, San Francisco and San Jose were reunited in 2005. No show during COVID-19 With the exception of 2020, the show was held every year. During COVID, the show was pre- sented only virtually; no people were present. This platform fizzled, and next year mask-wea- ring attendees were back on the floor. In 2024, SEMI announced that SEMICON West would be moving to Phoenix, Arizona. For years before, show visitors grumbled about San Fran- cisco: Its absence of cheap parking, expensive food, heavy traffic and its big-city dirtiness. There had often been rumors that SEMICON West might move to Las Vegas, where the Con- sumer Electronics Show met every January. Alternating venues Instead, SEMI said the show would move to Phoenix, alternating with San Francisco. Phoe- nix would be the venue in 2025, 2027 and 2029, while the show would return to San Francisco in 2026 and 2028. Arizona was selected, said SEMI, because of its growing semiconductor industry, which includes Intel and TSMC fabs and a large support infras- tructure. Apparently the Phoenix debut in 2025 was a success. As a result, SEMI announced in 2026 that after the October SEMICON West this year at Moscone, Phoenix will become the per- manent home for the show. San Francisco as a venue is out forever, it seems. SEMI found Phoenix with its growing industry compelling enough to rule out other venues such as Austin, Texas. If space were the only concern, SEMI could have chose the Anaheim Convention Center in Southern California. next page The San Mateo SEMICON West was next door to Bay Meadows Race Track. Overflow exhibitors, in fact, setup their exhibits in the parimutuel betting areas. The trotters and thoroughbreds ran during the Fair season, not during SEMICON West. In the photos, jockey Art Sherman weighs in during the 1974 season. (Ron Iscoff) After this year’s San Francisco event, the show will move to Phoenix permanently. (Moscone Center)
TAP TIMES - SEPTEMBER 2026 - PAGE 12 Hugle (from 11) Hugle Industries HIER Epitaxial Reactor, about 1968 Bill Hugle’s legacy is showcased with every SEMICON West that is presented. The holder of 30 patents Bill was the owner of 30 patents involving semi- conductor-related processes, according to Martin Pierek. He and Frances started their first materials re- search firm right out of college in the late 1940s. This is the company later acquired by the Bald- win Piano Co., where they developed the tech- nology for electronic organs. Since the couple founded Siliconix, Bill had never worked for any company other than one of the 12 that he and his wife founded. Top five equipment companies In the 1960s, one of the companies he and his wife started, Hugle Industries, was among the top five semiconductor equip- ment companies. In 1999, Hugle sold another of his many startups, Hugle Lithography, which he had started with his second wife Helga, to Karl Suss. Still an active entrepreneur, Bill started another lithography equipment company, Hugle Holithics, in 2000. This was to be based on the concept of ex- tending the limits of semiconductor lithog- raphy by eliminating the equipment’s lenses. The project, however, was never completed due to Bill’s declining health. The Hugle’s research interests over their careers were wide-ranging and notable. Prior to founding Siliconix, Bill and Frances worked at Westinghouse, both in California and Pennsylvania, where Bill — sources report, was involved in the company’s Molecular Electronics program for the Depart- ment of Defense. With Molecular Electronics devices, devices were created with detail too small to be seen except under a microscope. Hugle’s Japanese company Although many of the Hugles’ companies no longer exist in Silicon Valley, some are located offshore. Among them is Hugle Industries in Tokyo. This company originated from the original Hugle Industries in Silicon Valley and is under Japanese ownership. It began as the Far Eastern affiliate of Hugle Industries in Sunnyvale, Calif. The company makes semiconductor man- ufacturing equipment and anti-static con- trol systems. Dark days Compared to other great figures in the his- tory of Silicon Valley, Bill Hugle’s early path to success was probably not unique, al- though it was memorable. All that stopped, next page
TAP TIMES - SEPTEMBER 2026 - PAGE 13 Hugle (from 12) however, in April of 1984 when Bill was accused of being a spy for a foreign country. International espionage case The granulous, friendly Hugle, seemed to be any- thing but someone to be involved in an inter- national espionage case. This writer, at the time an editor for Semicon- ductor International, crossed paths with Hugle numerous times at numerous SEMICON West shows at the San Mateo County Fairgrounds. We traded a few minutes of simple conversation, then he moved on throughout the Fairgrounds to to assess the quality of that year’s event. After the indictment hit, many people treated him much like a runaway from a leper colony. Testifying in a Los Angeles federal court, Hugle said he had never been a spy, claiming that another man who had been indicted was seeking to frame him to receive a lighter sentence. The man who had said Hugle was implicated in the case was James D. Harper, 41, an elec- tronics engineer, according to The New York Times, April 9, 1984, Minuteman missile data Harper went on trial that year charged with selling secret data about the Minuteman missile to a Polish intelligence agent in 1975. Convicted, Harper was sent to prison. Harper’s prosecutors filed an affidavit with the court claiming that Hugle had intro- duced him to the Poles. A deal was made, the affidavit swore, under which Hugle was to receive a third of the money received from the sale of the secret data. Never charged While prosecutors for the government ad- mitted that Bill Hugle had been their tar- get, he was never charged. A Minuteman missile takes to the air. Bill Hugle was indicted, but never charged in an es- pionage case involving missile secrets. (DoD) In a phone interview from Paris, where Hugle was seeking capital for a new venture, he told the Times, that “Harper knew nothing that could implicate him in espionage.” “I Had no knowledge” Hugle also told the Times, “I had no knowledge what- soever of what Harper was doing. “I was astounded when he was arrested,” Hugle added. “I hadn’t even seen Harper in five years. Not a CIA agent Hugle also told The Times, it reported, that stories in a California publication that he had been a CIA agent were wrong. He said that he had used contacts in Iran in 1979 and 1980, during the Carter Administration, in an attempt to free the hostages that Iran had taken. Hugle admitted that he had known the Polish agent, but considered him a legitimate business- man, not an agent of a foreign government. The damage to Bill Hugel’s reputation must have been incalculable. He was described in an Oct. 23, 1983 Los Angeles Times article about the case as “The Yankee Trader.” The newspaper portrayed him as a “savvy, international wheeler- dealer in electronics equipment.” The purported deal between Harper, the Polish agent (codenamed “The Minister”) and Hugle was valued at $250,000, not a princely sum in the mid-1980s. The Minuteman information, prosecu- tors said, would be invaluable to Warsaw Pact nations. James Durward Harper, the source of Hugle’s al- next page
TAP TIMES - SEPTEMBER 2026 - PAGE 14 Hugle (from 13) The Phoenix Convention Center will be the new, permanent home for SEMICON West. leged complicity, was sentenced to life in prison on May 14, 1984. The whole espionage affair was a Hollywood drama, particulary the part involving Hugle, who had also been given the sobriquest “The Big Man.” The FBI had spent untold amounts of money trying to punish Bill Hugle mostly for his prior friendship with Harper. Bill was an entrepreneur, the founder of many semiconductor equipment companies and the prime mover behind SEMICON West. He was a true renaissance man. AI drove back-to-back quarters of record equipment results Milpitas, Calif. – SEMI recently an- nounced in its Worldwide Semiconduc- tor Equipment Market Statistics (WWSEMS) report that global semi- conductor equipment billings in- creased 23% year-over-year to $40.53 billion in the second quarter of 2026. 11% quarter-over-quarter growth Second quarter 2026 billings registered an 11% quarter-over-quarter growth. The results mark a second consecutive record quarter, reflecting accelerating de- mand for technology and capacity solutions to support AI investments momentum as well as global build-out of the AI comput- ing infrastructure. Sustained investment The second consecutive quarter of record semiconductor equipment billings reflects the industry’s sustained investment in the advanced manufacturing capacity needed to support rising chip demand, particularly for AI infrastructure,” said Ajit Manocha, SEMI President and CEO. “Growth across Asia, North America and Europe underscores the global nature of this demand and the critical role of semi- conductor manufacturing in enabling the next wave of AI-driven innovation.” The Equipment Market Data Subscription (EMDS) from SEMI provides market data for the global semiconductor equipment market. semi.org
TAP TIMES - SEPTEMBER 2026 - PAGE 15 Backend equipment: rewiring the supply chain Lyon, France — The semiconductor back-end equipment market is ex- pected to reach $9.5 billion in 2026 and is expected to grow with a CAGR of 6.3% by 2031. Market drivers are advanced packaging, HBM, and AI infrastructure are reshaping vendor qualification and regional packag- ing strategies. Supply chain is shifting The supply chain is shifting from volume assembly to a strategic advanced packag- ing ecosystem, driven by partnerships, lo- calization, and supplier diversification. Regionalization and export controls are reshaping equipment sourcing, while Chi- nese suppliers close gaps in selected seg- ments, creating a dual-market dynamic. The semiconductor back-end equipment market entered 2026 in a stronger posi- tion, though growth is uneven across tool categories. Yield improvement As advanced packaging, HBM, and AI in- frastructure capacity come online, cus- tomers are prioritizing utilization and yield improvement before launching another major investment cycle. Yole Group has released its latest report, Status of the Back-End Equipment Industry 2026. AI demand driver The strongest demand driver is AI infras- tructure, including HBM, high-performance logic, larger package sizes, and tighter logic-memory integration. Unlike a typical semiconductor recovery, next page
TAP TIMES - SEPTEMBER 2026 - PAGE 16 Backend equipment (from 15) spending is concentrated on package com- plexity rather than tool volume, as cus- tomers invest in equipment addressing yield, alignment, warpage, thermal, and in- terface challenges. Supply chain driver Advanced packaging remains the main supply chain driver. TCB is critical for HBM scaling, with Hanmi and ASMPT as key ref- erences, while Hanwha, K&S, and BESI in- crease their exposure to HBM and advanced logic. Competition in die attach expanding Competition in die attach and interconnect is expanding among established, emerging, and Chinese suppliers. Similar partnerships involving TSMC, Intel, Samsung, SK Hynix, Micron, ASE, Amkor, and JCET reinforce the importance of eco- system co-development. Tighter process control Adjacent segments are following suit: DISCO leads dicing as it and peers like Tokyo Seimitsu (Accretech) expand singu- lation capabilities, while KLA, Camtek, and Onto Innovation benefit from tighter pro- cess control requirements. Regionalization remains a major trend, with manufacturing and service operations increasingly distributed across China, Southeast Asia, Korea, Japan, India, Mex- ico, the US, and Europe. Tariffs, export controls, and localization re- quirements are pushing suppliers to ex- pand footprints in Malaysia, Singapore, next page
TAP TIMES - SEPTEMBER 2026 - PAGE 17 Backend equipment (from 16) Vietnam, and the U.S., while U.S.- China tensions encourage OSATs, IDMs, and foundries to diversify. India’s ambitions India is accelerating its own am- bitions through new OSAT and ATMP projects backed by government in- centives. China remains a key part of the landscape: local suppliers are ad- vancing in die attach, bonding, dic- ing, and hybrid bonding-related technologies, supported by domestic demand. Controls limit access While export controls still limit ac- cess to high-end equipment, pro- gress is visible across segments, creating a dual-market dynamic where international suppliers stay essential for leading-edge applica- tions while Chinese vendors close gaps elsewhere. OSATs, IDMs, foundries, and mem- ory makers all shape different parts of the back-end investment cycle, and equipment suppliers are increas- ingly engaged earlier in development cycles to hit yield, cost, and scalabil- ity targets. By 2031, the back-end equipment leadership will depend on more than tool performance. yolegroup.com
TAP TIMES - SEPTEMBER 2026 - PAGE 18 All-solid-state batteries entering validation phase Companies including Toyota, Honda, Nissan, and Samsung SDI are slightly ahead in small-scale ASSB pilot production. Automotive-grade performance Moreover, Japanese suppliers have already verified key automotive-grade performance metrics and are speeding up the assess- ment of ASSB modules for vehicle use. TrendForce observes that ASSB Technology Readiness Levels (TRLs) advanced signifi- cantly in 2026. Across key development regions including China, Japan, and South Korea, ASSB per- formance validation has progressed beyond Taipei, Taiwan — TrendForce’s latest “Quarterly Report on Developments in Global SSB Industry, 2Q26” reveals that the all-solid-state battery (ASSB) sector has reached an important stage of engineering validation in 2026 the laboratory proof-of-concept stage (TRL 1–3), with some leading companies ad- vancing toward TRL 5–6. This marks a shift in R&D priorities from achieving laboratory-scale material break- throughs to improving manufacturing pro- cesses, ensuring product consistency, and meeting automotive qualification require- ments. Sample validation Leading Japanese and Korean companies achieved breakthroughs in ASSB sample validation on pilot engineering lines during the first half of 2026, with automotive ASSB cells completing partial performance and reliability verification. The cells met design targets for key met- rics, including charge-discharge perform- ance and durability. For example, Nissan’s thick-format 23-layer stacked automotive next page
TAP TIMES - SEPTEMBER 2026 - PAGE 19 ASSBs in validation phase (from 18) ASSB cell has completed charge-discharge testing and demonstrated better capacity retention than conventional liquid lithium- ion batteries. Pilot lines Meanwhile, leading Chinese companies in- cluding CATL, BYD, and FAW continued advancing small-scale ASSB pilot lines, accelerating progress toward TRL 4–5. Alongside automotive-grade validation, ASSB applications are expanding from EVs into higher-value markets. TrendForce uncovered that SSB products from companies including Samsung SDI, Maxell, Ilika, ProLogium, and Factorial are targeting drones/eVTOLs, micro-electron- nics, construction machinery, and embod- ied robots, with several applications and orders beginning to materialize. Since 2025, investment and capacity ex- pansion across China, Japan, and South Korea have increasingly focused on solid electrolytes and key raw materials such as Li2S. Installed capacity TrendForce estimates that global installed lithium sulfide capacity has exceeded 600 metric tons by 1H26 and is expected to in- crease substantially to the thousand-ton scale by 2027. Overall, total demand remains limited as ASSBs are still primarily in the small-scale pilot production and R&D stage. trendforce.com
TAP TIMES - SEPTEMBER 2026 - PAGE 20 Power chip market for xEVs to hit $14.5 billion by 2031 Lyon, France —The xEV power-chip market will more than double to $14.5 billion by 2031. xEVs will make up around 70% of light-ve- hicle production by 2031, with China lead- ing adoption. Consolidation and vertical integration consolidation and vertical integration accel- erate as carmakers bring inverters in- house. Technology trends: SiC is displacing silicon as batteries move from 400V to 800/1,000V. The buzz around electric vehicles may have quieted, but the market for the power semiconductors that drive them is only getting started. To address these issues, the Yole Group has released its latest report, Automotive Powertrain and Electrification 2026 – Focus on Power Electronics. Reality check Following a “reality check” in 2024-2025, when hybrid vehicles gained ground and battery-electric growth slowed temporarily, the xEV industry is regaining momentum. Yole Group forecasts xEV production to grow at a double-digit CAGR25-31 to around 70% of global light vehicle produc- tion, with battery-electric vehicles alone accounting for 33 million units. In turn, the xEV power-device market is set to reach $14.5 billion by 2031, growing at a 14% CAGR over the same period. yolegroup.com
TAP TIMES - SEPTEMBER 2026 - PAGE 21 Top Five NAND Flash brands rise 77% Q/Q in 2Q26 Taipei, Taiwan — TrendForce’s latest NAND Flash industry research reveals that AI server demand remained steady in the second quarter of 2026— particularly for enterprise SSDs—re- sulting in a supply shortage across the NAND Flash market. This allowed suppliers to raise ASPs signifi- cantly through contract negotiations. As a result, the combined revenue of the top five publicly listed NAND Flash brands rose 77% Q/Q to $68.87 billion. Weak demand from smartphones, PCs Looking ahead to the third quarter, demand from smartphones and PCs is expected to remain weak as higher BOM costs push up device prices. However, demand from AI servers for en- terprise SSDs remains strong. Meanwhile, suppliers are generally prioritizing capital expenditure on DRAM and HBM, limiting new NAND Flash capacity. ASPs are there- fore expected to continue supporting over- all industry revenue growth in the third quarter. Among the top five NAND Flash brands, market leader Samsung benefited from higher NAND Flash ASPs driven by AI server demand, while a growing share of enterprise SSD shipments significantly im- proved profitability. Samsung’s share edged downwards Revenue rose 70.7% Q/Q to nearly $23.06 billion. However, as competitors posted faster revenue growth, Samsung’s market share edged down to 29.3% in the second quarter. SK hynix Group, including SK hynix and Solidigm, ranked second. Continued ramp- up of its 321-layer process, strong orders for Solidigm’s high-capacity QLC enterprise SSDs, and rising ASPs lifted NAND Flash revenue 89.5% Q/Q to more than $14.27 billion. Its operating margin also reached another record high. next page
Advertisers Advanced Interconnections Contech Solutions Ideagraphics Leeno Micro Control Co. Mirror Semiconductor OKins Electronics Precision Contacts Signal Integrity TAP TIMES TopLine advanced.com contechsolutions.com ideagrfx.com leeno.com microcontrol.com mirrorsemi.com okinsglobal.com precisioncontacts.com signalin.com taptimes.com topline.tv TAP TIMES - SEPTEMBER 2026 - PAGE 22 Watch your business soar with an ad in TAP TIMES! Contact roniscoff@gmail.com Micron likewise benefited from a signifi- cant increase in ASPs, with NAND Flash revenue reaching $11.85 billion, up 99.2% Q/Q — the highest growth rate among the top five brands. This lifted Mi- cron to third place. Kloxia in fourth place Kioxia ranked fourth. Revenue and profit- ability increased, supported by persist- ently high NAND Flash prices and continued growth in BiCS8 output. Revenue rose 79.9% Q/Q to approx- imately $10.72 billion, while market share edged down to 13.6%. AI-driven price increases SanDisk also benefited from AI-driven ASP increases in the second quarter. However, relatively conservative bit ship- ment growth limited its revenue increase to 50.7% Q/Q, reaching nearly $8.97 bil- lion and trailing the growth of its peers. trendforce.com NAND Flash (from 21) Michael Robbins named SIA chief executive Washington,. D.C. — The Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA) has named Mi- chael Robbins SIA president and CEO. He will assume the role on Oct. 1. Robbins will succeed John Neuffer, who announced his de- parture in January following nearly 12 years as president and CEO. Neuffer will stay with the association through Sep- tember. semiconductors.org Michael Robbins EVENTS September 28-October 1, IMAPS Symposium, Bos- ton, Mass. imaps.org September 29-October 2, PCB West, Santa Clara, Calif., pcbwest.com October 1-2, Photonics Packaging Summit, Boston, Mass., imaps.org October 11-16, International Test Conference, San Antonio, Texas, itcweek.org October 13-15, SEMICON West, San Francisco, semiconwest.org October 13-16, 57th Korean Electronics Show, Seoul, S. Korea, kes.org October 25-29, SMI International, Rosemont, Illinois, smi.org October 27, TestConX Korea, Suwan, S. Korea, test- conx.org October 29, TestConX China, Shanghai, testconx.org
TAP TIMES - SEPTEMBER 2026 - PAGE 23 Move over DRAM, Sandia’s ETCRAM is rewriting the memory rules Albuquerque, N.M. — Electrothermo- chemical random access memory chips (ETCRAM) developed at Sandia Labs are able to achieve 100 times higher precision than existing state-of-the-art memory technology. Costs will triple The energy costs from data centers are ex- pected to triple in the next two decades, accounting for up to 800 billion kilowatt hours of power, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. A Sandia project called electrothermo- chemical random access memory, or ET- CRAM, aims to change the way data is stored on computers and create more effi- cient and resilient memory. “The technology that we’ve developed is designed to overcome a limitation of our existing computing technology to really im- prove energy efficiency,” materials scientist Elliot Fuller said. 100X higher precision “ETCRAM is able to achieve 100 times higher precision than existing state-of-the- art technology — and at least three orders of magnitude greater dynamic range. That’s the value of a number that you can store in analog.” ETCRAM technology works differently than the classical method of programming ones and zeros on fragile silicon wafers. Instead of only two values, the team, led by Elliot Fuller and Alec Talin, demon- strated that electronics manufacturers can localize heat and electrical pulses in a com- pound, to create any analog value. Alec compares the process to an object that everyone uses daily, a battery. “You can think of ETCRAM as a memory de- vice, Talin said. “You can charge a battery half way and then stop charging and use that energy. Think of the state of the bat- tery as a memory. It stores that state.” The team started with what is known about the properties of various materials used in batteries. Lithium ions are great for storing energy but not for holding data. “We want to store the maximum amount of information density in a particular volume,” Elliot said. Self-heating element “The challenge with electrochemistry is often how slowly it works. The trick with getting this memory element to work was to have it self-heat.” he added. “It heats up when the electrochemistry is activated, and that’s what gives us this very large dynamic range and allows it to have very high precision.” More resistent to damage Devices outfitted with ETCRAM might also be more resistant to damage from extreme conditions. Consider satellites, which need shielding against solar radiation and extreme tem- peratures outside the atmosphere. They carry payloads of sensors to make phone calls, global chat, self-driving cars, global positioning and a host of other technol- ogies possible. Size matters But right now, size is an issue for the team. “We’ve developed a working microproces- sor,” Elliot said, “but it’s relatively small compared to the computational capacity of a GPU. sandia.gov
TAP TIMES - SEPTEMBER 2026 - PAGE 24 Semiconductor Research Corp. launches SPARC program Don’t be a misinformed marsupial! Reach your key buyers with an ad in TAP TIMES Contact roniscoff@gmail.com Durham, N.C. — The Semiconductor Research Corporation (SRC) has launched the Semiconductor and Packaging Advanced Research Consor- tium (SPARC). This is designed to accelerate breakthrough research in semiconductor technologies critical to the future of the global micro- electronics ecosystem. Project-based research program SPARC represents their newest project- based research program, enabling SRC members to rapidly identify emerging tech- nology challenges, collaboratively define research priorities, and invest in high-im- pact research from top-performing univer- sities to deliver both foundational innovation and practical industry relevance "SPARC reflects the evolution of how indus- try and academia collaborate to solve the semiconductor challenges of tomorrow," said David Henshall, SRC senior vice pres- ident. "By bringing together our member com- panies to define and fund targeted re- search opportunities, we're creating a more agile framework for accelerating in- novation while continuing SRC's long- standing mission of advancing semiconductor technology through univer- sity research." A strong foundation SPARC begins with a strong foundation. An industry-funded, industry-led Research Council has selected 21 collaborative re- search projects representing more than $13 million in research funding to address critical technology priorities identified by SRC member companies. These inaugural projects that kicked off re- cently span a broad range of next-genera tion research in semiconductor design, manufacturing and packaging and establish the first portfolio within SPARC's project- based framework. Collectively, these projects address the full semiconductor innovation stack — from ad- vanced transistor architectures and het- erogeneous integration to intelligent analog and mixed-signal systems. AI, digital-twin technologies The program leverages AI, digital-twin methodologies, hands on experimentation, critical analysis and system-technology co- optimization to accelerate the development of scalable, energy-efficient, and reliable semiconductor technologies for the AI era and beyond. src.org In the early days of Silicon Val- ley, Bill Hugle was everywhere. He was a founder or co-founder of multiple organizations, in- cluding SEMI and Siliconix. With his wife, Frances, the pair founded several companies bearing the Hugle name.. Today, his historical importance to the semiconductor industry has been largely forgotten, while others, such as Intel co- founders Dr. Robert Noyce and Dr. Gordon Moore have be- come legends. This exclusive cover is by San Francisco artist Alex Rudé. art-of-rude.com Cover Copyright ©2026 by TAP TIMES
TAP TIMES -SEPTEMBER 2026 - PAGE 25 Satellite launch market to reach $40.4 billion by 2028 Taipei, Taiwan — Starlink has recently deployed its first batch of V3 satel- lites. The new satellites, featuring a 2,048-element phased-array antenna and operating at a lower orbital alti- tude, deliver ultra-low-latency broad- band connectivity and direct-to-cell (D2C) services. As Starlink readies for large-scale deploy- ment of the V3 constellation, launch de- mand for parent company SpaceX is expected to grow steadily, driving the global satellite launch market to an esti- mated $40.4 billion by 2028. Communications demand TrendForce reports a significant rise in sat- ellite communications demand among users in suburban and fringe metropolitan areas, leading Starlink to upgrade its con- stellation from V2 Mini to V3. The older V2 Mini satellites operated above 500 km altitude, where orbital congestion was increasing. To address this issue, Starlink lowered the V3 satellites' operating altitude to about 350 km, aiming to reduce signal interfer- ence in the Ka- and Ku-bands. Decreased end-to-end latency This change decreases the end-to-end la- tency to under 20 ms and allows average broadband speeds of 100–200 Mbps uplink and 1–2 Gbps downlink for users in subur- ban regions of the United States, Brazil, Chile, and Argentina. The new constellation also supports D2C cell voice services and enhanced in-flight connectivity. The V3 satellites also introduce the V-band (50–75 GHz) and W-band (75–110 GHz) spectrums, allowing electronically steered array (ESA) antennas on the ground to be- come smaller and more compact. However, since signal attenuation becomes significantly more severe at these fre- next page
TAP TIMES - SEPTEMBER 2026 - PAGE 26 Satellite launch market (from 25) quencies, RF front-end modules must evolve toward highly integrated milli- meter-wave monolithic microwave inte- grated circuits (MMICs) and low-power compound semiconductor materials such as gallium nitride (GaN) and gallium arse- nide (GaAs) for high-frequency power amplifiers. Next generation RF modules This technological transition has prompted Starlink to award next-generation RF module orders to Taiwanese semiconduc- tor and microwave component suppliers. These include UMT, WIN Semiconductors, and Transcom, while also creating oppor- tunities for WNC, which offers one-stop RF module integration solutions. while also creating opportunities for WNC, which offers one-stop RF module integra- tion solutions. Starship completes launch validation, dra- matically reducing launch costs TrendForce reports that the V3 deploy- ment mission was carried out using SpaceX’s Starship, marking the successful completion of the vehicle’s launch valida- tion. Satellites placed in orbit The Super Heavy booster ignited 33 Rap- tor engines to deliver 20 of the signifi- cantly larger V3 satellites into orbit, while simultaneously collecting critical perform- ance data on technologies such as the ve- hicle’s thermal protection system. The V3 constellation is expected to enter a phase of large-scale deployment as the number of satellite communications sub- scribers continues to grow. Furthermore, the emergence of 6G around 2028 is expected to create new ap- plication scenarios integrating satellites, high-altitude platform stations (HAPS), and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). Together, these trends are expected to in- crease demand for launch services — par- ticularly those provided by Starship — driving the global satellite launch market from $29.3 billion in 2026 to $40.4 billion by 2028. Booster recovery From a cost perspective, the Falcon 9 cur- rently recovers only its first-stage booster, whereas Starship is designed to recover both its Super Heavy first stage and its second stage. This transition allows SpaceX to shift from manufacturing a new rocket for each mis- sion to primarily conducting routine main- tenance, reducing launch costs from tens of millions of U.S. dollars per mission to just a few million dollars. Cash flow burden TrendForce believes this cost reduction will ease SpaceX’s cash flow burden while en- abling greater investment in emerging areas such as space-based AI in-orbit com- puting. trendforce.com
TAP TIMES - SEPTEMBER 2026 - PAGE 27 Building energy security through more sustainable batteries at MIT Cambridge, Mass. — For Hugh Smith, the challenge of building an energy- secure future isn’t about creating the world’s “best” battery. It’s about de- signing the right battery for the right job. As a fifth-year PhD candidate in MIT’s De- partment of Materials Science and Engi- neering, Smith studies sodium-ion batteries, an emerging alternative to the lithium-ion batteries that power everything from smartphones to electric vehicles. Replacing critical minerals By replacing expensive critical minerals like lithium, nickel, and cobalt with more readily available elements like sodium, iron, and manganese, his research aims to make energy storage both more affordable and more sustainable. “I’ve believed for a very long time that the biggest engineering problem humanity faces is the transition to clean energy,” Smith says. “Batteries are a critical bottle- neck in that transition.” Growing up in Albany, New York, Smith was drawn to materials science because it combined two of his favorite subjects: chemistry and math. Everyday life What kept him interested, however, was the field’s ability to touch nearly every as- pect of everyday life. “Anytime you interact with a solid material, there are people who intentionally de- signed that material for a specific purpose,” he says. That idea of designing materials with a real-world purpose eventually led him to batteries. Hugh Smith is seeking battery alternatives for critical ma- terials (MIT) After earning his undergraduate degree in materials science from Case Western Re- serve University, Smith came to MIT to ex- plore how new battery chemistries could reduce costs without sacrificing perform- ance. Consumers often want batteries that charge quickly, last for years, store large amounts of energy, and remain inexpen- sive. In reality, improving one characteris- tic of this technology usually means compromising another. Different apps, different needs A smartphone battery, for example, priori- tizes energy density and long lifespan, while a battery storing electricity for the power grid doesn’t need to be lightweight or compact. Instead, cost and reliability become the most important considerations. Rather than chasing an all-encompassing solution, Smith focuses on finding the right balance for specific applications, often jug- gling competing priorities. Instead of strengthening a singular charac- teristic, Smith attempts to maximize as many components of the battery as pos- next page
TAP TIMES - SEPTEMBER 2026 - PAGE 28 Sustainable batteries (from 27) sible, including cost, performance, sustain- ability, and reliability, depending on how it will be used. “It’s trying to balance everything,” he says. “It’s not catering extremely to some prop- erties and then abandoning others.” Lower-cost options The sodium-ion batteries Smith studies could eventually provide lower-cost options for electrical grids or more affordable elec- tric vehicles. Because sodium-ion batteries can largely be manufactured using the same infrastruc- ture already developed for lithium-ion bat- teries, they also offer a potentially smoother path toward commercialization than many emerging battery technologies. Before beginning graduate school, Smith spent seven months at the Battery Innova- tion Center in Newberry, Indiana, an ex- perience that broadened his understanding of how scientific discoveries become real technologies. Working alongside materials scientists, chemists, mechanical engineers, and chem- ical engineers showed him that no single discipline can solve the challenges of bat- tery development alone. A huge team effort “It requires a huge team effort,” Smith says. “It requires a lot of different types of knowledge.” He says the experience also helped him better understand where his own expertise could make the greatest impact and when collaboration across disciplines is essential. Outside the lab, Smith makes time to stay active through MIT’s intramural sports pro- gram. Smith works with a battery cycler, pictured, which simply charges and discharges batteries over and over again for thousands of cycles. (MIT, Adam Glanzman) As he prepares to graduate in the winter and pursue a career in battery research and development, Smith hopes to continue designing technologies that support the transition to clean energy. Wind and solar are cheap “Lots of smart people have already made wind and solar very cheap,” Smith says. “The issue is reliability, and batteries can help solve that problem. I hope the work I’m doing helps to affordably unlock the transition to an electric grid powered by re- liable clean energy, and an electrified trans- portation network.” mit.edu Smith holds a sodium-ion battery. (MIT)
TAP TIMES - SEPTEMBER 2026 - PAGE 29 Global semiconductor market records exceptional Q2-2026 growth San Jose —The World Semiconductor Trade Statistics (WSTS) organization has released Q2 statistical data and confirmed the WSTS Spring forecast for the global semiconductor market through 2029. The semiconductor market more than dou- bled in the first half of 2026. The global semiconductor market reached $702 billion dollars in the first half of 2026, represent- ing a 102 percent increase year-over-year. Exceptional expansion The industry continued its exceptional ex- pansion, driven by sustained investments in artificial intelligence infrastructure, high- performance computing and advanced memory technologies. Product segment performance was led by Memory, which expanded an exceptional 305 percent yearover-year. Logic also recorded outstanding growth of 45 percent. The remaining product categories also recorded positive year-over-year growth, demonstrating continued strength across a broad range of semiconductor applications. Looking ahead Looking ahead, the WSTS Spring 2026 forecast has been largely confirmed by the results from the first half of the year. Based on the incorporation of actual Q2 data, the calculation for the full-year 2026 market reaches 1,655 billion U.S. dollars, corresponding to annual growth of approximately 108 percent, 18 percentage points above the original Spring estimate. Forecast $2.1 trillion The calculation for 2027 reaches approximately 2.1 trillion dollars, corre- sponding to annual growth of approx- imately 29 percent. next page
TAP TIMES - SEPTEMBER 2026 - PAGE 30 Exceptional growth: WSTS (from 29) For 2026, calculations for all product seg- ments become slightly higher, except Sen- sors. The key growth driver, Memory, is now ex- pected to grow by 302 percent (53 per- centage points higher than the original estimate), reflecting stronger-than-ex- pected performance in the first half of the year. The figures supplied by WSTS are based on the WSTS Spring 2026 Forecast, with Q2 2026 data replaced by actual results. Growth rates for Q3 2026 and beyond fol- low the same assumptions as the original June forecast. Please note that these are not new forecast values generated by WSTS under a revised scenario. wsts.org
TAP TIMES - SEPTEMBER 2026- PAGE 31 iPhone 18 Pro materials cost expected to surge nearly 40% Taipei, Taiwan — Escalating component costs— led by memory —are expected to significantly raise production ex- penses for Apple’s next iPhone 18 series. For the 256 GB model, the bill of materials cost is estimated to increase by about 38% Y/Y, making higher retail prices unavoidable. Reducing gross costs Apple may offset some of these costs by re- ducing gross margins to prevent weakening consumer demand, aiming to keep prices manageable, maintain shipment volumes, and grow market share. An analysis of the 256 GB iPhone Pro models over the past two generations by TrendForce shows that memory’s share of total BOM cost has risen dramatically — from around 10% a year ago to approx- imately 34% in 3Q26, and is expected to ex- ceed 40% in 1H27. This marks a fundamental shift, where the application processor (AP) and display were once the dominant cost drivers. BOM 38% higher Driven by soaring memory prices, Trend- Force estimates that the BOM cost of the 256 GB iPhone 18 Pro, scheduled for re- lease in the third quarter of 2026, will be approximately 38% higher than that of its 2025 predecessor. If memory prices continue their upward trajectory, the BOM cost of the iPhone 18 Pro 256 GB is expected to increase even further in 2027. MacBook pricing strategy TrendForce believes Apple is likely to follow the pricing strategy adopted for its recent MacBook launches by sacrificing part of its gross margin to soften price increases for the iPhone 18 lineup, helping preserve shipment volume. next page
TAP TIMES - SEPTEMBER 2026 - PAGE 32 Iphone Pro (from page 31) The company may also revisit its pricing strategy for older iPhone models, potentially raising their prices alongside the launch of the new generation to partially offset rising memory costs. Margin squeeze If even Apple — with its industry-leading profitability — is facing such pressure, An- droid smartphone vendors are likely to ex- perience an even greater margin squeeze. Android brands will need to pass through a larger portion of rising component costs to remain profitable and avoid selling devices at a loss, resulting in steeper retail price in- creases than those expected for the iPhone. The pressures will be particularly acute in at the entry-level and mid-range seg- ments, where already-thin margins leave little room to absorb higher costs. Increase price, discontinue product With memory prices having risen five- to sevenfold since the beginning of 2025, many brands may have no choice but to implement substantial price increases or discontinue product lines that have slipped into negative gross margins. TrendForce therefore expects global smart- phone production to remain under down- ward pressure from 2H26 through 2027, as persistently rising memory costs continue to weigh on market demand. trendforce.com
TAP TIMES - SEPTEMBER 2026 - PAGE 33 Bacteria employed to create living transistors at MIT Cambridge, Mass. — MIT researchers have engineered bacteria that can function as transistors, allowing the team to create living “circuit boards” that can be printed onto a growth me- dium in a Petri dish. In electrical circuits, transistors function as switches that can turn current on or off. In the biological circuits that the researchers have created, bacterial switches control the flow of small molecules, which send signals to downstream circuit components. Two different transistors The research team designed two different transistors, along with three bacterial strains that relay information between the transistors, giving them the building blocks they need to design nearly any type of cir- cuit. In a new study, they used these cells to create circuits that can add two or three in- puts, or send one input to a specific loca- tion in the circuit. “We’ve built some initial computer archi- tecture components that are commonly used, but any operation can be built with these five strains,” says Hamid Doosthos- seini PhD ’25, an MIT postdoc and the lead author of the new study. Environmental conditions Using this approach, the researchers hope to develop circuits that one day could coat plant leaves or roots, where they could compute to sense and respond to environ- mental conditions such as drought or at tack by pests. Christopher Voigt, head of MIT’s Depart- ment of Biological Engineering, is the sen- ior author of the paper, which was recently published in Nature Chemical Biology. Former MIT postdoc Haorong Chen is also an author of the paper. Cells as transistors When designing synthetic biology circuits, researchers typically engineer cells to ex- press proteins and transcription factors that interact to perform a task such as sensing a target molecule, which then triggers production of a specific output. These simple circuits can perform various logic functions, but they must use unique transcription factors to avoid crosstalk within the circuit. There is a limited number of transcription factors that can be used for these circuits, which limits the overall complexity that can be achieved in a single cell. Additionally, putting too many circuits in one cell can overburden the cell’s protein production machinery. A different approach In the new paper, the researchers took a different approach: Instead of building an entire circuit into one cell, they designed cells that could act as transistors. These transistors can then be combined in differ- ent ways to create a variety of circuits. nest page MIT researchers have engineered bacteria that can func- tion as transistors. (MIT)
TAP TIMES - SEPTEMBER 2026 - PAGE 34 Bacteria employed to create transistors (from 33) To create the transistors, the researchers chose a bacterium called Pantoea agglo- merans, which commonly grows on sur- faces, including plants. Using these cells, they made two types of transistors that can be switched on or off by a molecule called OC-6. One of the tran- sistors is switched on by this input, and the other is switched off. Target molecule Each transistor also detects the presence of a target molecule, in this case, OC-12. Depending on whether that molecule is present, and whether the switch is active, the transistors produce an output molecule known as OHC-14. The researchers also used three strains of Pantoea agglomerans to create relays, which translate the OHC-14 signal into an output that can be fed into another transis- tor. Using these relay strains, the researchers can “wire” the transistors together, just like an electronic circuit board. Bi-directional switch For example, they could create a bidirec- tional switch with two transistors that sense OC-12, and then send that infor- mation to different relay strains based on a switch input, ultimately feeding into other transistors that further process the signal. The researchers created their circuits by printing colonies of bacteria onto plates containing agar, a growth medium. Each colony is printed about 5 millimeters from the nearest one. This allows the sig- nals to travel only to the nearest colony, which then relays them to the next one. so information flows only in one direction. In this paper, the researchers demon- strated a transistor that can perform sev- eral types of logic operations depending on its location in the circuit layout, includ- ing “multi-input,” “or,” and “imply” gates. They also combined the transistors to create more complex circuits that can add up two signals, process more signals si- multaneously, or function as a demulti- plexer. Colonies working together largest of these circuits, which adds two inputs together, contains 24 bacterial col- onies wired together. “This work shows that we can get toward more complicated functions by linking up simpler functions in individual cells,” Voigt says. “Computationally, there’s nothing that your iPhone can do that these circuits couldn’t do.” Circuits made from these cells take about eight hours to perform each calculation, much longer than a computer circuit. But, for biological applications, that is a rea- sonable amount of time, the researchers say. “We’re not trying to replace computers, but rather put computational control into biology. If you have bacteria on the root of a plant, or the plant itself is doing the computing, running a simple calculation overnight is fast enough relative to a growth season,” Voigt says. If developed for use in agriculture, this type of circuit could be applied to the roots of plants to detect different types of stress. mit.edu
TAP TIMES - SEPTEMBER 2026 - PAGE 35 Chemists find a new path to luminescence at Stanford Stanford, Calif. —The molecule behind the glow of fireflies and plankton breaks apart in an unexpected order under force — a discovery that could lead to better stress sensors and help illuminate some mysteries of the natu- ral world. The dancing lights of fireflies and the eerie blue sparkle in crashing waves get their glow when a molecular square of carbon and oxygen atoms breaks. New research New research has shown that mechanical force can cause that break to happen in a different way than was previously known. The study, published in Journal of the American Chemical Society, has implica- tions for the development of light sensors as well as understanding luminescence in nature. Chemists have long used molecules called dioxetanes to create light. These molecules have the same core structure that enables biological luminescence. Light emission These are two oxygen atoms and two car- bon atoms bonded together in a square. Heat or mechanical force can break those bonds, causing light emission . Heat is known to break apart the two ox- ygens first. Scientists expected that the same thing happened under mechanical force since the bond between the two car- bons is stronger. But when Stanford researchers modeled force applied to dioxetanes, they found that the bond between the carbon atoms breaks first, then the one between the ox- ygens. “It is a very different chemistry with me- chanical force,” said Todd Martínez, the study’s senior author and a chemistry pro- fessor in the Stanford School of Humanities and Sciences (H&S). “It still gives off light. The order of events is just different, and it points to the pos- sibility that we might be able to make dif- ferent products.” In previous research, experiments on a molecule named bis(adamantyl)-1,2-dioxe- tane demonstrated that mechanical force could break the oxygen-carbon square and emit light, but it was assumed the oxygens were breaking first. The current study had its start when a Stanford visiting professor, Charles Diesen- druck of the Israel Institute of Technology, suggested to Garrett Kukier, a doctoral scholar in Martínez’s lab, that they might look closer at where the force was applied in those experiments. Quantum mechanics models Kukier then developed quantum mechanics models that used the same pulling loca- tions where force was applied to the dioxe- tane molecule in the experiments. stanford.edu The dancing lights of fireflies and the eerie blue sparkle in crashing waves get their glow when a molecular square of carbon and ox- ygen atoms breaks. (Stanford University)
TAP TIMES - SEPTEMBER 2026 - PAGE 36 DRAM, NAND Flash to account for 68% of major CSP CAPEX in 2027 Taipei, Taiwan — TrendForce’s latest memory industry research, indicates that major global cloud service pro- viders (CSPs) are accelerating AI in- frastructure investment. Total CAPEX is projected to surge 98% Y/Y in 2026 and rise another 50% in 2027. The rapid increase will be driven in part by soaring memory contract prices and robust procurement demand. DRAM and Flash rising TrendForce estimates that DRAM and NAND Flash combined will account for 47% of CSPs’ total CAPEX in 2026, with their share rising further to 68% in 2027. TrendForce says that the sharp rise in memory contract prices since the second half of 2025 has significantly increased memory’s share of CSP spending. Server DRAM—a key procurement category for CSPs—saw contract prices rise by a cu- mulative 64% in 2H25, with a further jump of approximately 270% expected in 2026. Flash prices surging Meanwhile, a similar trend is unfolding in NAND Flash, with enterprise SSD prices rising by around 35% in 2H25 and pro- jected to surge by a cumulative 235% in 2026. Some long-term agreements (LTAs) signed from 2Q26 onward have included price ceilings that could limit further increases. Memory prices to remain elevated Nevertheless, HBM contract prices could still rise by 70–140% in 2027. TrendForce expects memory contract prices to remain broadly elevated in 2027, continuing to be an important factor driving up memory’s share of CSP CAPEX. On top of higher prices, rapidly growing demand for memory bits from CSPs is prompting suppliers to prioritize limited next page
TAP TIMES - SEPTEMBER 2026 - PAGE 37 DRAM, NAND Flash (from 36) capacity for server applications. TrendForce estimates that HBM and RDIMM combined will account for 51% of DRAM bit supply in 2026. Process migrations, capacity ramps In 2027, process migrations and capacity ramp-ups at new fabs in the second half of the year are expected to drive a 27% in- crease in combined server DRAM and HBM bit supply. TrendForce indicates that rising memory contract prices, particularly for HBM, com- bined with higher bit supply, will push memory’s share of CSP capex to 68% in 2027. This will have two major implications for the AI ecosystem. Elevated memory costs First, elevated memory costs provide server and AI chip suppliers such as NVIDIA with greater justification for raising product prices. CSPs may subsequently need to increase capital expenditures further to maintain their targeted AI chip Chip procurement volumes Alternatively, CSPs could more aggressively optimize AI system memory architectures by reducing memory capacity per system, helping mitigate high DRAM and NAND Flash costs or limited supply allocations while still meeting AI chip and server ship- ment targets. Such adjustments could take several forms, including, but not limited to, adjust- ing RDIMM configurations and the amount of HBM integrated into future AI chips, as well as exploring AI ASICs with the model architecture hardwired into the silicon. trendforce.com Your advertisement in TAP TIMES makes dollars and sense!
TAP TIMES - SEPTEMBER 2026 - PAGE 38 Chinese national pleads guilty to export violations Salt Lake City, Utah — Dingwei Chen, a 29, a citizen of the People’s Republic of China, recently pleaded guilty in federal court in Salt Lake City to vio- lating the Arms Export Control Act. U.S. District Judge David Sam accepted Chen’s guilty plea and scheduled sentenc- ing for Oct 19. Chen faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. Military-grade communications Chen attempted to purchase military-grade satellite modems and radios manufactured for the U.S. military by (unnamed) Ameri- can companies, according to the U.S. Jus- tice Dept. The specific communications hardware Chen attempted to buy may not be legally exported from the United States without a license from the Department of State’s Di- rectorate of Defense Trade Controls, which generally does not issue licenses to export military goods and services to China. “Chen tried to divert sensitive U.S. military technologies to the People’s Republic of China, technologies the PRC could have used against us in the future,” said Assis- tant Attorney General for National Security John A. Eisenberg. “These advanced technologies are a pro- duct of United States ingenuity and invest- ment, and the National Security Division will act together with our partners across the government to enforce our laws to pro- tect the military advantage bestowed by such technologies,” he added. Worked with others in China According to court records, Chen worked with others in China to try and acquire sensitive communications systems from foreign arms dealers on the black market. They discussed various methods to export them to China. Initially, Chen and his co- conspirators sought to trans-ship the goods through Switzerland; then they spoke about picking them up in Saipan; finally, they decided to smuggle through Mexico. Paid with cryptocurrency After making an initial down payment of over $40,000 U.S. dollars, Chen and his co-conspirators switched to cryptocurrency, noting that “cold wallets are essentially anonymous bank accounts.” Each transaction processed through them is private and untraceable.” They went on to pay roughly $30,000 worth of USDT, which is a type of cryptocurrency. These down payments relate to the purchase of 10 modems. justice.gov San Jose — NVIDIA founder and CEO Jensen Huang has been ranked first on Glassdoor’s Best CEOs list for 2026. 90% of employees approve In the just-released ranking, recognition is earned directly from the people who know their leadership the best — employees. Huang topped the list, with 99% of em- ployees approving of the job he does. NVIDIA’s Jensen Huang named CEO of the Year by Glassdoor Jensen Huang
TAP TIMES - SEPTEMBER 2026 - PAGE 39 Gartner’s forecast: Chips to reach $1.6 trillion this year Stamford, Conn. —Global semiconduc- tor revenue is expected to reach $1.6 trillion in 2026, increasing 92% from 2025 revenue of $809 billion, accord- ing to Gartner Inc., a business and technology insights company. In 2027, it is forecast to total $1.9 trillion. “The semiconductor industry is entering a fundamentally new phase of growth,” said Ben Lee, director analyst at Gartner. Sustained investment “The pace of industry expansion is accel- erating dramatically, driven by sustained investment in AI infrastructure and a stronger-than-anticipated memory pricing cycle. “As AI infrastructure scales, it is not only reshaping investment across the semicon- ductor ecosystem but also redefining the industry’s application mix,” he added. AI data centers The AI data center ecosystem is expected to grow from 36.5% of the semiconductor revenue in 2026 to more than 53% by 2030, underscoring a structural shift in where semiconductor value is created and how demand is evolving across the indus- try.” Memory revenue is forecast to total $837 billion in 2026 and surpass $1 trillion in 2027. Memory remains the primary contributor to semiconductor industry growth this year and is forecast to account for 54% of total semiconductor revenue, up from 27% in 2025. DRAM revenue is forecast to increase 246.6% in 2026, while NAND flash revenue is expected to grow 371.9%. Supply remaining tight Although additional capacity is expected to enter the market in 2027, supply-demand conditions are projected to remain tight as AI infrastructure deployments continue to increase memory consumption. “AI infrastructure has fundamentally changed the dynamics of the memory mar- ket,” said Shrish Pant, director analyst at Gartner. “While pricing expansion is accelerating growth in 2026, continued AI infrastructure deployments, higher memory content per AI server and sustained demand for high- bandwidth memory (HBM) will support memory revenue growth through 2027 and beyond,” Pant said. AI Benefits Non-Memory. too As AI clusters become larger, faster and more power-intensive, they require in- creasing investment in CPUs, networking silicon, power management, analog devices and optical interconnect technologies. “AI is expanding the semiconductor oppor- tunity across the entire infrastructure stack rather than benefiting a single device cate- gory,” said Lee. “Excluding memory, Gartner forecasts semiconductor revenue to grow from $589 billion in 2025 to $718 billion in 2026, an increase of 21.9%, and reach $864 billion in 2027.” gartner.com Help your sales bloom with an ad in TAP TIMES!
TAP TIMES - SEPTEMBER 2026 - PAGE 40 SK hynix breaks ground for plant in W. Lafayette, Indiana Seoul, Korea — SK hynix Inc. is open- ing a new future for AI cooperation be- tween the United States and South Korea by establishing a first next-gen- eration High Bandwidth Memory(HBM) production hub in the U.S. The facility will be built in West Lafayette, Indiana, near Purdue University. A number of government, company and university of- ficials attended a recent groundbreaking ceremony. $4 billion investment MThe Indiana packaging and testing facility. with a total expected investment of over $4 billion, is scheduled to open its cleanroom by October 2028 and initiate mass produc- tion of next-generation HBM in the second half of 2029. It is projected to grow into a key HBM pro- duction hub in the US led by a workforce of approximately 1,000 personnel during an- ticipated commercial operations. Notably, the Indiana fab marks SK hynix’s first HBM production base established in the United States, featuring an operation framework closely integrated with produc- tion in South Korea. Made in USA Cutting edge wafers produced by SK hynix in Korea will be delivered to Indiana, where they will undergo advanced packaging and testing before Made in USA products are supplied to U.S. customers. Furthermore, an “Advanced Packaging R&D Testbed” will be built alongside the produc- tion lines, enabling customers, universities, and business partners to collaboratively de- velop next-generation packaging technol- ogies and rapidly execute prototype fabrication and performance validation. SK hynix is the second largest provider of semiconductor memory. (SK hynix) As competition to expand AI infrastructure intensifies, the Indiana plant, which con- nects SK hynix’s Korea-US HBM produc- tion, is expected not only to help stabilize the U.S. semiconductor supply chain but also to contribute to strengthening the na- tional economy and security in the AI era. An historic investment “SK hynix’s historic investment in West La- fayette is further proof that Indiana is lead- ing the way in rebuilding America’s semiconductor industry,” said Sen. Todd Young (R-Indiana), “This project will create good-paying jobs, strengthen our national and economic se- curity, and ensure the technologies of the future are developed and manufactured here in the United States.” Indiana Governor Mike Braun said. “This project is a win for Hoosiers, a win for our economy and a great leap forward for Indi- ana in the race to be the best in the indus- tries of the future.” More than 100 suppliers Currently, more than 100 companies are being considered as suppliers for materials, components, and equipment for the West Lafayette facility, which will support the stable operation of the Indiana fab and further solidify the U.S. AI ecosystem. skhynix.com
TAP TIMES - SEPTEMBER 2026 - PAGE 41 Micron pours first concrete at upstate New York fab Clay, N.Y. — Micron Technology Inc. says it is accelerating its planned U.S. fab and technology investments and increasing its expected spend to more than $250 billion through 2035, driven by surging demand for memory in the AI era. Goal: 40% DRAM is U.S. Micron anticipates that the increase in in- vestments will support its long-term goal of producing 40% of its DRAM in the U.S. while creating additional good-paying di- rect and indirect jobs. The expanded investment reflects Micron’s confidence in its technology leadership and continued demand for its leading-edge memory products. The announcement came as Micron cele- brated the first concrete pour milestone at its Clay, New York site, which occurs more than one quarter ahead of the original plan and marks the transition from site prepara- tion to vertical construction. As announced earlier, Micron also plans to invest up to $3 billion to develop the do- mestic semiconductor supply chain ecosys- tem in support of its U.S. manufacturing footprint. Micron Chairman, President and CEO San- jay Mehrotra recently hosted the concrete pour, joined by supplier partners and fed- eral, state and local leaders, "As America celebrates its 250th anniver- sary, data and memory are foundational to the modern economy — and Micron is in- creasing our U.S. investments to more than $250 billion through 2035 to meet that moment," said Mehrotra. “Reaching this milestone ahead of schedule reflects the speed and determination be- hind this project. Micron is proud to bring the world's most advanced memory man- ufacturing to Central New York, strengthen the domestic semiconductor supply chain,” he added. micron.com Micron Technology recently celebrated the first concrete pour at its Clay, N.Y. site (Micron)
TAP TIMES - SEPTEMBER 2026 - PAGE 42 GB300 rack-scale solutions to be NVIDIA’s lead shipment driver Taipei, Taiwan — TrendForce’s recent AI server industry report reveals that GB300 rack-scale solutions are set to be NVIDIA’s leading driver of ship- ments in 2026, with demand antici- pated to remain robust through the first half of 2027. Following that, the next-gen VR200 racks will increase production and account for the largest portion of shipments in 2027. Small share for Rubin Ultra Meanwhile, the newer Rubin Ultra platform (VR300) is expected to hold a relatively small share, as its HBM configuration and server architecture are still being finalized. TrendForce estimates that shipments of NVL72 racks, including GB and VR plat- forms, will grow by more than 50% YY in 2027. At the same time, the ASP of the Vera Rubin systems is expected to be roughly double that of GB300, while prices for key upstream components such as wafers and HBM could also rise. As a result, the combined output value of GB300, VR200, and VR300 NVL72 rack systems is projected to exceed $710 billion in 2027, surging 214% Y/Y. Momentum for data centers This growth is expected to provide signifi- cant momentum for the broader AI data center supply chain, including ODM system manufacturers and power and cooling solu- tion providers. The customer mix for rack-scale solutions is also shifting. Although the five major North American CSPs remain the primary buyers, their share of procurement is ex- pected to decline from approximately 70% in 2025 to 60% in 2026. Rising demand This is primarily due to rising demand from companies such as Tesla (including xAI and next page
NVIDIA’s rack-scale solutions (from 42) TAP TIMES - SEPTEMBER 2026 - PAGE 43 SpaceX) and CoreWeave. NVIDIA’s latest financial results also show that its data center business is approaching 93% of total revenue, while neocloud and sov- ereign cloud providers are emerging as ad- ditional growth drivers. Chip competition expands NVIDIA recently outlined its strategy for AI infrastructure during its earnings call, with the PORTS-Pike campus in Ohio serving as a notable example. The campus will be developed, owned, and operated by SB Energy, with OpenAI leas- ing 8 IT-GW of capacity. NVIDIA will serve as the exclusive compute provider for the entire site and has pro- vided a residual value guarantee for the initial 4.25 IT-GW, with aggregate payment obligations capped at $105 billion. The arrangement extends beyond chips to encompass land, power, and data center facilities, signaling NVIDIA’s expansion of its competitive presence from the xPU level into data center infrastructure. Similar strategy for Google TrendForce notes that Google, a leader in the ASIC ecosystem, is pursuing a similar strategy by guaranteeing lease payments for data centers used by Anthropic, with total commitments reaching $44 billion. In return, Google can obtain approximately 20% equity stakes in related data center and power plant projects while securing Anthropic as a major flagship customer for its TPUs. Broadcom, which co-designs Google’s TPUs, has also committed to repurchasing chips and covering price differences if the products cannot be sold. Data centers are providing increased sales to companies like NVIDIA. (generic photo) MIT develops new system for creating shape-changing devices Cambridge, Mass. —A new set of mod- ular components allows users to create reconfigurable smart devices with electrical connections that keep work- ing no matter which shape the struc- ture forms. This electrical modularity can enable engi- neers to design interactive devices that can sense which shape they have taken, with- out the need for external wires. For instance, the modular components, which the researchers call “bifur-circuits,” could be used to rapidly design and proto- type adaptable smart devices, like assistive furniture that helps injured individuals change body positions while recovering. mit.edu Overall, both Google and NVIDIA are ex- tending their strategies beyond chip and system supply into data center infrastruc- ture. Long-term demand By incorporating their proprietary chips into financing arrangements, the com- panies are seeking to secure demand for their products over the longer term. trendforce.com
TAP TIMES - SEPTEMBER 2026 - PAGE 44 Industry report: historic growth among global competition Washington, D.C. — SIA’s annual State of the U.S. Semiconductor Industry re- port, released recently, provides a snapshot of where the industry stands in 2026: the extraordinary growth un- derway, the opportunities and chal- lenges ahead, and the policy priorities necessary to sustain U.S. leadership in this vital technology are explored. New heights in 2025 The semiconductor market reached new heights in 2025, and that trend has only intensified this year. Global semiconductor sales reached a record $795.6 billion last year, far surpass- ing initial forecasts, and the World Semi- conductor Trade Statistics (WSTS) organization projects worldwide semicon- ductor sales will reach $1.5 trillion in 2026. This rapid growth reflects the accelerating deployment of artificial intelligence and the continued expansion of advanced comput- ing, 5G and emerging 6G communications, healthcare devices, advanced defense sys- tems, and other semiconductor-enabled in- novations. U.S. continues to lead The United States continues to lead the global semiconductor industry. In 2025, U.S.-headquartered companies generated $425 billion in semiconductor sales, ac- counting for 53.4% of worldwide market share, the highest U.S. share since 1984. This leadership is fueled by America’s strengths across the full innovation stack, from cutting-edge research and chip design to advanced manufacturing, and the indus- try’s continued commitment to innovation. At the same time, the United States con- tinues to expand its domestic semiconduc- tor ecosystem. Since 2020, semiconductor companies have announced more than $770 billion in private-sector investments across 160 projects in 30 states, strength- ening domestic manufacturing, equipment production, materials, packaging, and re- search capabilities. Resilient supply chain These investments are helping build a more resilient semiconductor supply chain, supporting high-paying American jobs, and reinforcing the nation’s economic and na- tional security while complementing the in- dustry’s globally interconnected supply chains.ging, and research capabilities. Artificial intelligence has emerged as a de- fining driver of semiconductor demand. Every layer of AI infrastructure depends on semiconductor technologies, from logic processors and memory to analog and foundational chips. A single AI server rack contains more than 4,500 packaged semiconductors, with chips representing more than 95% of an AI server rack’s value and more than half of total AI data center capital expenditures. Data centers: a $4 trillion investment According to SIA and Deloitte research, government and industry are expected to invest more than $4 trillion in AI data center infrastructure globally through 2028, with up to $2.8 trillion of that invest- ment dedicated to semiconductors. Global competition is intensifying even as demand accelerates. Governments around the world continue to invest aggressively in semiconductor manufacturing and re- search, seeking to capture greater shares of this strategically vital industry. semiconductors.org Put your money where your market is: TAP TIMES!
TAP TIMES - SEPTEMBER 2026 - PAGE 45 Is today’s AI assembly/test software old with just a new label? Every earnings season brings another wave of headlines attributing test, as- sembly, and packaging gains to AI. Stock prices react, press releases multiply, and TAP operations leaders are told a new era of automation has arrived on the pro- duction floor. Tara Bouchler, JBF Consulting A closer look Yet a closer look at what is actually being described often reveals something less rev- olutionary. Recent industry survey findings from supply chain and logistics professionals suggests this confusion is wide- spread. Some 55% of respon- dents classified tradi- tional rules-based automation as AI, while 27% said AI was embedded in software they already use, but they don’t know know what tech- nology is actually underneath. This is not an argument that artificial intel- ligence lacks value in test, assembly, and packaging operations. Agentic tools, machine learning Agentic tools and machine learning are producing real gains in specific, well- scoped use cases, from predictive mainte- nance on test handlers and assembly equipment to adaptive test scheduling and yield analysis across multiple device types and package configurations. The concern is that some industry conver- Tara Buchler sations fail to distinguish between genuine innovation and long-established automa- tion, leaving TAP and operations executives to make investment decisions without enough clarity to evaluate what they are actually buying. Behind the New Label Manufacturing execution systems and test and assembly scheduling platforms have relied on deterministic, rules-based logic for generations. A test lot or assembly run enters certain parameters. The system applies fixed rules, and an outcome is produced that a human can trace step by step. That is not AI in the modern sense. It is, in fact, heuristic software, and it has quietly underpinned test scheduling, han- dler routing, and materials planning for as long as most people working in test, as- sembly, and packaging today have had a career. How do you define AI? These capabilities remain essential to mod- ern TAP operations, but calling them “AI” does not make them fundamentally differ- ent technologies. That distinction matters because when buyers and sellers define AI differently, meaningful comparisons become nearly impossible. TAP operators may believe they are invest- ing in advanced AI when they are actually purchasing enhanced automation, making vendor evaluations and industry bench marks increasingly difficult to interpret. When a vendor describes automated test scheduling or exception handling as an AI capability, the first question a TAP opera- next page
TAP TIMES - SEPTEMBER 2026- PAGE 46 tions leader should ask ask is what specifi- cally is new about the underlying method, and whether the outcome differs meaning- fully from what deterministic optimization already delivered. Last mile delivery platforms Industry coverage of last mile delivery platforms, relevant to TAP operators man- aging outbound logistics for finished, pack- aged devices, illustrates the gap well. One recent analysis of last mile delivery technology found that most AI enabled platforms on the market today are still leg- acy systems with AI modules layered on top, rather than systems built natively around machine learning. Learning or applying the same rules? This distinction shows up whether a plat- form actually learns from each shipment or simply applies the same rules as before. One logistics provider offers a useful case study, not because its results are illegiti- mate, but because its public disclosures show how difficult it is to separate genuine AI driven improvement from operational discipline that predates any AI label/ This is a lesson directly applicable to TAP operators weighing similar claims from their own supply chain and logistics ven- dors. The “Lean” AI approach The company reported that its Lean AI approach increased productivity by more than 40% and automated millions of ship- ping tasks since 2022. The company also disclosed that 95% of checks on missed less-than-truckload pickups are now automated, saving hun- dreds of hours of manual work per day. Fortune reported that the company’s AI AI software with a new label? (from 45) agents now deliver freight quotes in roughly 31 seconds, a process that once took a human specialist about 20 minutes. Impressive numbers Those are genuinely impressive operational numbers. They also show why buyers should ask vendors what role AI played in producing those results. The survey found only 11% of organiza- tions establish measurable AI success crit- eria, while just 3% evaluate outcomes against the original business case. Without measurement, it is difficult to sep- arate AI-driven gains from improvements achieved through process redesign, auto- mation, or operational discipline. Freight brokers have automated quoting and exception checks for two decades using conventional software, raising the question of how much improvement comes from new agentic methods versus process redesign and operational changes that would have occurred regardless of the technology label. Robotics investment The overwhelming share of robotics invest- ment and media attention is concentrated in distribution, inside warehouses and ful- fillment centers. Physical automation on the transportation side, by contrast, remains minimal and geographically constrained. Autonomous trucking pilots exist, but they are concentrated in limited corridors and favorable climates, and market research on autonomous last mile delivery still de- scribes the segment as early stage, with most deployments confined to short range, low complexity routes rather than the full breadth of a national freight network. next page
TAP TIMES - SEPTEMBER 2026 - PAGE 47 AI software with a new label? (from 46) Coverage that treats last mile automation and autonomous delivery as a uniformly arrived capability tends to gloss over how narrow the actual physical footprint re- mains. This is a gap that TAP operators should keep in mind when evaluating vendor claims. Don’t dismiss AI investment None of this means TAP operators should dismiss AI investment. It means the bur- den of proof should sit with the vendor, not the buyer. Before treating a capability as new, a TAP or supply chain leader can reasonably ask what specifically has changed in the under- lying method, what outcome improved and by how much? Additionally could that outcome have been achieved achieved through existing deter- ministic tools, such as test scheduling, handler routing, and planning, with better configuration and oversight. Treat every claim with scrutiny Asking those questions does not require deep technical expertise. It requires treat- ing every AI claim with the same scrutiny that any other capital investment would receive. That discipline is especially important given that 78% of organizations pursue AI with- out a formal strategy and 85% select AI opportunities without a consistent eval- uation process. Without clear governance and measurable objectives, TAP operators risk confusing fa- miliar automation with genuinely new ca- pabilities. The test, assembly, and packaging industry does not need less enthusiasm for AI. Capital for capability It needs greater precision about what the term actually describes, so that the capital being spent on it goes toward capability that is genuinely new rather than a familiar tool wearing an unfamiliar name. About the Author Ms. Buchler is Principal of Strategy at JBF Consulting, a logistics strategy advisory and technology integration firm. She brings more than 20 years of experience to the intersection of logistics operations and en- terprise supply chain software. jbf-consulting.com Texas Instuments’ two advanced packaging and test facil- ities in Malaysia make extensive use of automation. (TI) Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. is at the leading edge with its highly advanced, robotically-driven wafer fabs and packaging facilities. (TSMC)
TAP TIMES - SEPTEMBER 2026 - PAGE 48 Optical transceiver market may reach $112B in 2031 Lyon, France — The optical transceiver market is forecast to grow to $112 bil- lion in 2031, a ~35% CAGR during the period 2021-2031. The newly released Photonics at the Speed of AI, a white paper, highlights Yole Group’s broader 2026 photonics collection. A new era for optical transceivers For most of the past decade, optical trans- ceivers were infrastructure: important, technically demanding, but infrastructure nonetheless. According to Yole Group, that era is over. When a cluster of tens of thousands of GPUs is built to train a single model, com- pute is only as useful as the communica- tions fabric that holds it together. Latency stalls synchronization, bandwidth throttles utilization, and interconnect power com- petes directly with compute power. The bottleneck has migrated to the wire, the fiber, and the components that convert between them. Four-domain framework To make sense of that shift, Yole Group’s White Paper introduces a four-domain framework: Scale-In, Scale-Up, Scale-Out, Scale-Across, reflecting how interconnect engineers think about the problem today. Each layer has a different technology entry point, a different incumbent to displace and next page
TAP TIMES - SEPTEMBER 2026 - PAGE 49 Optical transceivers (from 48) while compute improves only about 3.3x, pushing the industry to deploy approx- imately 70x more interconnects every two years – a rate the optics module industry is not currently equipped to sustain. That pressure flows directly into the transceiver market: from roughly $10 bil- lion in 2021 to a forecast $112 billion in 2031 (~35% CAGR). Fueled by hyperscaler CAPEX Fueled by hyperscaler CAPEX projected to reach $670 billion in 2026 alone, and a combined $5.3 trillion between 2026 and 2031. yolegroup.com a different commercialization timeline. The picture is neither a simple “copper is dying” narrative nor a “CPO will solve everything” announcement. Copper is being extended Copper is being extended deliberately through megawatt-class rack engineer- ing. Co-packaged optics (CPO), meanwhile are entering commercial deployment narrowly, in proprietary switching plat- forms, for the handful of players verti- cally integrated enough to absorb its manufacturing risk. The scaling math is stark. AI models grow roughly 100x every two years while Have an article for TAP TIMES? Contact the editor at roniscoff@gmail.com
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