Many regions and states in the modern world are trying to achieve greater independence in the production of semiconductor components, but the head of the industry association SEMI, Ajit Manocha, is convinced that without deep international cooperation the industry will not be able to develop. It will reach a turnover of $1 trillion a year by the beginning of the next decade, and it will take another ten years after that to double the figure.
Image source: GlobalFoundries
The Nikkei Asian Review publishes the thoughts of the head of a large industry association that unites most chip manufacturers in the world. According to Ajit Manochi, the creation of regional chip production hubs is necessary because it helps to increase the reliability of product supply chains, but this does not eliminate the need for deep international cooperation.
The pandemic has demonstrated how vulnerable these supply chains can be. The shortage of chips in the auto industry prevented it from developing harmoniously for two years. The head of the association himself at that time was faced with the problem of replacing a tiny sensor in his personal refrigerator, and it took three months to wait for the delivery of this spare part.
At the same time, he emphasizes that countries are highly dependent on each other, and among them there are five or six major players. Japan supplies special materials for the production of chips, equipment comes from Europe, and in some countries supplying inert gases, fighting is currently underway, as the head of the SEMI association explained. It will not be possible to get rid of this mutual dependence in a short time, according to him.
Diversification of chip applications, according to Anochi, softens the downward phase within industry cycles. Periods of crisis become shorter and their depth decreases as different market niches balance each other out.
Manocha noted that it took the semiconductor industry 70 years to reach $600 billion in annual sales, but it will reach the $1 trillion mark in the next six to eight years, with artificial intelligence systems and the so-called “Internet of Things” being the main drivers of growth. Quantum computing will drive the industry forward in the next decade. It will reach the mark of $2 trillion in annual turnover ten years after breaking the $1 trillion mark, according to Ajit Manocha. Already this year, a rise will begin, which will demonstrate an increase in industry turnover based on the results of the current year.