July 3, 2025

Round-up

Highlights

1. Washington un-clips EDA wings. The US Commerce Department quietly scrapped last month’s export-license requirement for Synopsys, Cadence and Siemens, letting them resume full EDA tool sales to China and jolting shares up 6-7 percent overnight.¹²³
2. TSMC exits GaN, doubles down on advanced packaging. Hsinchu Fab 5 will stop Gallium-Nitride wafers by mid-2027 and flip to CoWoS/WoW packaging lines this month, part of the foundry’s push to chase surging AI demand.⁴
3. Low-power MCU house Ambiq files for NYSE IPO. Riding the AI edge boom, the Austin start-up aims to list under “AMBQ”, with BofA / UBS on the ticket.⁵

Other developments

• Seoul’s new president pledges a US $14.7 bn semiconductor stimulus while courting Washington on tariff relief.⁶
• Brussels admits its “code of practice” to help firms meet the AI Act may slip to late 2025.⁷
• Berlin presses the US for a quick tariff deal covering autos and semis before a July deadline.⁸
• Synopsys–Cadence rally fans talk that the stalled US $35 bn Ansys takeover could now clear Beijing regulators.⁹
• Spot DDR4 SODIMM prices jumped 13 % in TrendForce’s 3 July print, signaling tight PC memory supply.¹⁰
• Intel’s board will weigh a costly pivot from 18A to a next-gen 14A node after new CEO Lip-Bu Tan flagged tepid customer traction.¹¹
• G.Skill clocks DDR5-10000 on CAMM2 modules—another sign the notebook-first form factor is maturing fast.¹²

Did You Know? The now-rescinded EDA ban lasted just 40 days—one of the shortest tech-export curbs ever imposed by the Bureau of Industry & Security.¹³

In-depth

1 │ Government & Corporate Policy

• EDA export thaw

  • BIS letters sent 3 July lifted license requirements for EDA and ethane exports to China.¹
  • Vendors say Chinese customer portals will be fully re-enabled within three business days.³

• Seoul’s post-crisis stimulus

  • President Lee Jae-myung proposed a ₩20 trn package (~US $14.7 bn) to revive growth and offset martial-law damage.⁶
  • He signaled flexibility on US trade talks that threaten Korean chipmakers with new duties.

• EU AI Act implementation wobble

  • DG CONNECT now targets “end-2025” for the voluntary compliance playbook, six months later than first promised.⁷
  • Semiconductor firms using high-risk AI in yield-learning tools gain extra breathing room.

• Germany seeks tariff truce

  • Chancellor Merz urged Washington to clinch a deal before US tariff hikes hit EU semis and autos next week.⁸
  • Berlin is willing to offer accelerated market-access for US chips in return.

2 │ Economics, Finance & Outlook

• Ambiq IPO filing

  • The ultra-low-power MCU designer joins the AI-centric listing queue; proceeds will fund next-gen neural sensor hubs.⁵
  • BofA and UBS lead; no size disclosed yet.

• EDA stocks pop

  • Synopsys +6.7 %, Cadence +5.9 % pre-market on the rule rollback.⁹
  • Analysts note the bounce removes a key overhang on Synopsys’ pending Ansys buy.

• Intel’s 14A rethink

  • Sources tell Reuters Tan may stop courting foundry customers for 18A, focusing on 14A and writing off hundreds of millions.¹¹
  • Move follows yesterday’s DCP coverage of Intel’s earlier 18A pull-back.

• Memory spot-price surge

  • DDR4 16 GB SO-DIMM average hit US $38, up 13 % day-on-day, TrendForce’s 3 July snapshot shows.¹⁰
  • Brokers cite sustained AI-server demand and cautious vendor output.

3 │ Technology & R&D

• TSMC quits GaN, converts Fab 5

  • Commercial Times says GaN capacity (3–4 k wafers / mo) winds down by 2027; floors retooled for CoWoS, WoW and WLSI immediately.⁴
  • Navitas shifts orders to PSMC, preferring GaN-on-Si compatibility.

• Intel eyes external glass substrates

  • Industry sources report the in-house glass-core program is on hold; Intel may source from ASE or Shinko instead.¹⁴
  • Decision would free resources for backside-power and hybrid-bonding projects.

• Loongson 3C6000 debuts on LoongArch

  • China’s new CPU claims foreign-IP-free design, Level-2 security certification and AI compute extensions.¹⁵
  • Targets domestic servers, storage and industrial PCs.

• CAMM2 hits 10 GT/s

  • G.Skill’s 64 GB module reached DDR5-10000 on a modified ASUS Z890 Hero board—10-25 % faster than JEDEC DDR5-8800 specs.¹²
  • The thin, single-sided form factor could displace SO-DIMMs in high-end laptops next year.

Footnotes