US chipmakers

Qualcomm has taken a license to patents covering Huawei's LogicFolding chip technology, according to a Bloomberg report. The deal means the US chipmaker will pay to use intellectual property developed by its Chinese rival, an unusual cross-licensing arrangement given ongoing US restrictions on technology trade with Huawei and broader tensions between Washington and Beijing over semiconductors.

Investment firm Pluang is highlighting the XLG exchange-traded fund, which tracks just 50 of the largest companies in the S&P 500 rather than the full index. The fund is heavily weighted toward technology and chipmakers, concentrating exposure in mega-cap names. The point of interest for investors is how few stocks now dominate US market performance.

A union at Micron Technology's chip operations in Taiwan has received official approval to go on strike, Reuters reports. Taiwan's government mediation process cleared the way for industrial action at the US memory-chip maker's facilities on the island. The move signals rising labor tensions at one of the world's largest semiconductor suppliers, though no strike date has been confirmed.

The Department of War's Office of Strategic Capital has announced a $1.5 billion conditional loan commitment to Wolfspeed, Inc., the North Carolina-based maker of silicon carbide semiconductors. The funding, funneled through the Pentagon-affiliated investment office, signals federal backing for a chipmaker tied to defense-critical power electronics. The announcement follows Wolfspeed's recent financial restructuring, and observers see it as part of a broader push to secure domestic semiconductor supply chains.

The US War Department has pledged $1.5 billion in funding to chipmaker Wolfspeed to support production of wide bandgap semiconductors. The investment underscores the Pentagon's push to secure domestic supply of advanced power electronics components, which are critical for defense systems, electric vehicles and energy infrastructure. The move adds Wolfspeed to a growing list of semiconductor firms receiving major US government backing amid tightening technology competition with China.

Chinese state investment funds are expanding their holdings in Hua Hong Semiconductor, the country's second-largest contract chipmaker, as Beijing pushes to build self-sufficiency in older-generation, or legacy, chips. The move underscores China's strategy of deepening support for mature-node manufacturing amid continued US export controls on advanced semiconductor technology.

The US Commerce Department is converting advisory warning letters sent to semiconductor companies into binding legal requirements, with the move coming as a US-China trade truce nears expiration. The change would give the restrictions on chip exports formal force of law rather than relying on informal advisories, tightening controls on American chipmakers dealing with China.

Workers at Micron's operations in Taiwan have voted overwhelmingly to authorize a strike in a dispute over bonuses, according to labor representatives. The vote gives union leaders a mandate to call a walkout if negotiations with the US memory chipmaker fail. The move comes as Taiwan's chip industry faces intense global demand and heightened scrutiny of working conditions and pay.

GlobalFoundries will manufacture a key AI chip component for TSMC in a deal valued at around $2 billion. The arrangement pairs the US-based contract chipmaker with the world's largest foundry as demand for advanced packaging and critical components surges alongside the AI boom. The agreement underscores how chipmakers are deepening partnerships to expand capacity and secure supply chains for artificial intelligence hardware.

The Department of War, the renamed Pentagon, has announced a $1.5 billion loan commitment aimed at strengthening the US semiconductor supply chain, with the funds going to chipmaker Wolfspeed. The move reflects continued federal efforts to reduce reliance on foreign chip production and secure domestic manufacturing of critical semiconductor components, drawing attention from the tech industry.

GlobalFoundries, a chipmaker headquartered in New York and backed by UAE interests, has announced a $2 billion deal with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company. Under the agreement, GlobalFoundries will supply TSMC with silicon interposers, components that help connect chips in advanced packaging. The deal is framed as a boost to US chip manufacturing amid ongoing efforts to strengthen the American semiconductor supply chain.

Workers at a Micron chip plant in Taiwan have voted in favour of going on strike. The vote signals growing labour tension at the US memory chipmaker's Taiwanese operations, a key hub for global semiconductor production. A strike would raise concerns over supply of DRAM chips, which Micron produces in volume in Taiwan, and comes amid broader scrutiny of working conditions and pay in the island's tech sector.

GlobalFoundries has reached a deal to manufacture a key AI chip component for TSMC, according to Reuters and US regional outlets. The arrangement would see two rival chipmakers cooperate as demand for artificial intelligence silicon strains global supply. It is being read as a sign that even the world's largest contract chipmaker needs outside capacity, though details on the component and production volumes have not been given.

Chinese AI chipmaker Biren has raised roughly $515 million in a share placement, funds earmarked for developing its next-generation artificial intelligence chips. The round lands as Biren works to compete with Nvidia and other domestic GPU players like Huawei in China's fast-growing AI silicon market, where export controls have intensified the push for homegrown alternatives.

Broadcom is providing backing for a US$42 billion funding arrangement supporting OpenAI rival Anthropic, in a deal that ties the chipmaker still closer to the AI boom. The move underscores how semiconductor suppliers are increasingly financing the very AI companies buying their hardware, echoing a wider pattern of vendor-backed funding across the industry.

Chinese state funds are injecting billions of dollars into Hua Hong, one of the country's leading chipmakers, as part of Beijing's drive for semiconductor self-reliance. The move underlines China's push to build domestic chip capacity amid US export controls and tightening restrictions on advanced technology. Hua Hong, which focuses on mature-node chips, is seen as a key player in that strategy.

China has stockpiled 343 immersion deep ultraviolet lithography tools for advanced chipmaking, according to a new report from the Centre for Technology & Statecraft. The think tank is calling on Western governments to ban all exports of immersion DUV equipment to China, echoing the MATCH Act proposed by US legislators. The news intensifies debate over export controls on semiconductor manufacturing equipment.

Semiconductor stocks led by AMD and Nvidia have regained the lead in market performance, a move analysts are reading as a signal of continued strength in artificial intelligence demand. Commentators point to the chipmakers' outlooks as a barometer for how durable the AI investment cycle is, with investors watching whether corporate spending on AI infrastructure keeps justifying the sector's valuations.

TSMC is in early-stage talks with Elon Musk about a potential role in his planned Texas Terafab semiconductor foundry, according to a Times of Oman report. The discussions are still preliminary, and no agreement has been announced. The prospect of the world's largest chipmaker working with Musk's manufacturing project is drawing wide attention in the semiconductor industry.

The labor union at Micron Technology's Taoyuan operations in Taiwan has won a strike vote with 99 percent support, securing the legal right to strike and set up picket lines. The overwhelming result signals serious labor discontent at the US memory chipmaker's Taiwanese facilities and raises the prospect of industrial action at a major semiconductor site.

The union representing workers at Micron's Taiwan operations has secured a strike mandate in a dispute over bonus payments, according to Nikkei Asia. The vote gives union leaders the legal authority to call a walkout if negotiations with the US memory chipmaker fail. The move raises pressure on Micron amid strong global demand for its chips and comes as labour activism grows across Taiwan's tech sector.

Amkor Technology, the US-headquartered semiconductor packaging and test services provider, is drawing investor attention over whether its stock is undervalued in light of its global expansion plans in advanced packaging. The company has been investing in new facilities to serve chipmakers amid growing demand for packaging capacity. Observers are debating whether the market has fully priced in the potential returns from these investments.

Qualcomm has taken a license covering patents tied to Huawei's LogicFolding chip technology, according to a Bloomberg report. The deal links the two companies' semiconductor portfolios even as US-China export restrictions continue to shape the chip industry. Readers on Hacker News and in the tech press are discussing the arrangement, with interest focused on what it signals about cross-licensing between a major US chipmaker and Huawei despite ongoing trade tensions.

US memory chipmaker Micron has agreed to pay Netlist $600 million to settle a long-running patent dispute between the two companies. The agreement ends years of litigation over memory technology patents, in a settlement that ranks among the larger patent payouts in the semiconductor industry.

Micron Technology is being flagged as a short-selling target tonight, with traders discussing bearish positions in the US-listed memory chipmaker. The mention appeared on a trading community feed, but no further details on position sizes, price moves or catalysts were provided. Investors in semiconductor stocks are watching for confirmation of short activity.

Nvidia has committed $1 billion to American scientific research as CEO Jensen Huang publicly backs the Trump administration's Genesis Mission. The pledge ties the chipmaker to a federal push to accelerate US science and technology, and the announcement is drawing attention because it pairs major funding with Huang's visible political support for the programme and the president behind it.