technology
UMC Starts Mass Production of Silicon Photonics Wafers in Singapore as Shares Dip
Taiwan's second-largest contract chipmaker started commercial output of silicon photonics wafers at its Singapore fab on Tuesday in partnership with Silith Technology. The move targets high-speed optical interconnects for AI data centers.
Jul 14, 1:44 AM·1m read2 sources
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United Microelectronics Corporation started mass production of silicon photonics wafers at its 12-inch wafer fab in Singapore on Tuesday, Cnbc reported. The first commercial batch was delivered to Singapore-based Silith Technology to support the partner's 1.6 terabits per second platform.
The two companies integrated Silith's photonics design with UMC's wafer production capacity after 18 months of work.
UMC said the effort addresses demand for high-speed optical interconnects in AI and hyperscale data center networks. UMC plans to offer its own 12-inch silicon photonics platform for customer development by 2027. The partners are extending the roadmap to 400G/lane optical interconnects following commercialization of 200G/lane products.
Citi analysts forecast a 13% quarter-on-quarter sales increase for UMC in the second quarter of 2026 along with gross margin recovery. UMC reported June sales of NT$23.12 billion, up 22.85% from a year earlier, and first-half cumulative sales rose 11.28% year-on-year. UMC shares fell nearly 5% in Taiwan on Tuesday before closing 1.6% lower.
The company is among several Taiwanese firms expanding manufacturing in Singapore, including Vanguard International Semiconductor Corporation's planned $7.8 billion plant with NXP Semiconductors. The global silicon photonics market is estimated at $3.71 billion in 2026, according to Polaris Market Research.
