Chip Observer April 2025

Stay ahead of the curve with the April 2025 issue of Chip Observer, your monthly intelligence report on the global semiconductor industry. This issue explores the most pressing developments—from the impact of renewed Trump administration tariffs on chip supply chains, to aggressive AI investments reshaping silicon roadmaps, and the latest breakthroughs on the path to 2nm process technology.

We also reveal updated rankings and shifting dynamics among the Top 25 semiconductor companies of 2024, offering insight into who’s leading—and who’s losing ground—in the race for semiconductor dominance. This month’s Company Profile features Ericsson, with a spotlight on its semiconductor strategy and 5G infrastructure push.

What’s Inside the April 2025 Issue

• Industry Observatory

  Tariffs, massive AI investments, and the 2nm race are shaping the semiconductor industry this month — from SoftBank’s $40B OpenAI deal to NVIDIA’s next-gen AI roadmap and breakthroughs in photonics and process technology.

• Under the Microscope

  From tariff turmoil and CHIPS Act uncertainty to SoftBank's $40B AI bet and NVIDIA’s jaw-dropping roadmap—TechInsights unpacks the month’s most significant geopolitical, investment, and semiconductor trends.

• Data Observatory

  The semiconductor equipment market closed 2024 stronger than anticipated, but early 2025 trends signal caution. Flat equipment orders, rising inventories, and weak consumer sentiment are setting the tone for a softer year—except in advanced packaging, which remains red-hot due to AI and HPC demand. We’re also tracking downgrades in fab utilization and early-year inventory build-up across memory and non-memory segments.

• Editorial: A Tale of Two Semiconductor Industries

  The global semiconductor market surged 22% in 2024 to $683.4 billion, led by winners like NVIDIA, TSMC, AMD, and memory giants driven by datacenter and edge AI demand, while automotive and MCU segments struggled with inventory gluts and weak demand; smaller players faltered as the top five suppliers captured 57% of sales, and Q1 2025 forecasts broad revenue declines except for ongoing AI growth.

• Company Profile: Ericsson

  Ericsson may be best known for inventing Bluetooth and shaping mobile communications history, but its modern focus is all business—serving telecom giants with critical 5G infrastructure, software, and services. Despite a 6% drop in 2024 revenue, the company is positioning itself to benefit from OpenRAN adoption, Western infrastructure upgrades, and future 6G innovations.

• Interesting Observations

  From 3D scaling and hybrid bonding to the limits of NLP accuracy, TechInsights highlights key shifts in semiconductors and AI, exploring molybdenum’s role in 3D chip scaling, hybrid bonding’s impact on HPC and AI hardware, and the potential pivot from saturated NLP models to multimodal AI.

• Retro Tech: Can You Name This Iconic Music Phone?

  It played MP3s, took 2MP photos, and bore a legendary name. Marketed as the first phone to rival the iPod, this device fused mobile, music, and camera into one pocketable form. Think you know the model?