December 2025 was an action-packed month for the 3D InCites community and the semiconductor industry. Major leadership appointments, innovative technology launches, and global collaborations highlighted the month. Advances ranged from AI-powered process optimization and hybrid bonding production to new materials and solder solutions. Industry events showcased cutting-edge manufacturing experiences and marketplaces, while educational partnerships and awards celebrated innovation, sustainability, and talent development. Overall, December reinforced the sector’s momentum, collaboration, and drive toward next-generation semiconductor solutions.
Technology and Innovation
NHanced Semiconductors reported that the Besi Chameo 8800 Ultra Plus hybrid bonding platform entered production at its Morrisville, North Carolina fabrication facility, noting that the deployment positioned the company as reportedly the only pure-play advanced packaging foundry operating this system. The company indicated that the tool is capable of processing up to 2,000 dies per hour, supporting significantly increased throughput for advanced packaging applications.
Siemens unveiled PAVE360™ Automotive, a new digital twin software category designed to address the growing complexity of automotive hardware and software integration. The cloud-based platform was introduced as a pre-integrated, system-level solution intended to reduce development setup time from months to days while accelerating the development of ADAS, autonomous driving, and in-vehicle infotainment systems.
SurplusGLOBAL showcased its legacy semiconductor equipment and parts marketplace, SemiMarket, at SEMICON Japan 2025, held December 17–19 at Tokyo Big Sight, where the company highlighted SemiMarket’s AI‑enabled inventory search, parts matching, and on‑site seller onboarding support designed to connect global buyers and sellers and improve supply‑chain continuity for legacy semiconductor components.
Indium Corporation launched SiPaste® C312HF, a halogen‑free solder paste formulated for fine‑feature printing and designed to deliver consistent high print performance, excellent stencil life, low voiding, and easy cleanability or no‑clean process options, reportedly supporting fine‑aperture stencil applications down to 60 µm in advanced system‑in‑package assembly.
Collaborations
Planoptik was selected to participate in the SEMICON Japan 2025 Business Mission organized by the EU Business Hub, marking a strategic step in expanding the company’s presence in the semiconductor industry. The company highlighted that the mission provided opportunities to explore innovation, collaborate with industry professionals, and identify new growth avenues in advanced semiconductor technologies.
Amkor Technology hosted its annual Supplier Day 2025, welcoming global partners to discuss collaboration, strategic priorities, and supplier excellence. The company highlighted investments in advanced packaging technologies, including 2.5D and 3D integration for heterogeneous chiplet architectures, S-Connect™ wafer technology, silicon bridge and panel-level packaging for AI and HPC applications, and smart factory automation with real-time analytics and robotics
Siemens reported a collaboration with NVIDIA to develop comprehensive digital twins for the full electronic design flow, from chips to systems. The company indicated that the partnership integrated NVIDIA NIM and Nemotron models with Siemens’ Fuse EDA AI system to enable advanced generative and agentic AI solutions, while optimizing workloads on NVIDIA GPUs to achieve speedups of 10–100× in tasks such as simulation, verification, and multiphysics analysis, aiming to enhance throughput, efficiency, and accuracy across chip design.
Additionally, Toshiba Electronic Devices & Storage Corporation introduced Siemens’ electronic design automation (EDA) software across its design flows to accelerate semiconductor design innovation, aiming to enhance power integrity, reliability, and development speed for next‑generation power devices and analog semiconductors. The deployment included tools for advanced thermal design and analysis, analog/mixed‑signal simulation, and verification workflows to support analog–digital co‑design and strengthen overall design accuracy and efficiency.
Veeco announced wins with Sparrow Quantum in Denmark and Yeungnam University in South Korea, reporting that both organizations selected its Molecular Beam Epitaxy (MBE) systems — including the GENxcel R&D and GEN10 platforms — to support advanced quantum research in photonic quantum computing and nanostructure initiatives.
Expansion and Development
Koh Young, alongside Fuji America and Creative Electron, unveiled THE SMT FUTURE EXPERIENCE — a collaborative facility in San Marcos, California designed to accelerate innovation in surface‑mount technology (SMT) manufacturing. The venue, featuring a live SMT production line, collaborative workspaces, and educational programs, is intended to bring advanced concepts into manufacturing reality and will officially launch with a two‑day event in February 2026 focused on operational excellence and AI in electronics manufacturing.
NHanced Semiconductors reported that its advanced hybrid bonding production capabilities were strengthened with the operational deployment of the Besi Datacon 8800 CHAMEO^ultra plus system at its Morrisville, North Carolina facility, expanding support for mixed‑material hybrid bonding and enabling ultra‑precise die‑to‑wafer alignment, increased throughput, and broader heterogeneous integration across diverse substrates.
Awards and Recognition
ASE reported multiple national-level sustainability recognitions in Taiwan as 2025 concludes, citing achievements across environmental, social, and governance initiatives. The company indicated that ASE Holdings was named one of Taiwan’s Top 10 Sustainable Companies for a third consecutive year, while additional recognition highlighted family-friendly workplace practices, industrial fire safety leadership, national sustainable development efforts, and workplace health excellence, reflecting ASE’s continued focus on integrating sustainability with long-term operational and social impact.
KLA reported that it was honored with TSMC’s Excellent Production Support Award at the 2025 Supply Chain Management Forum, recognizing its inspection and metrology technologies supporting yield, productivity, and advanced process-node ramp-up, as well as the performance of its global teams.
ACM Research was named to TIME and Statista’s inaugural America’s Growth Leaders 2026 list, ranking #63 among the 500 fastest-growing companies in the United States.
Siemens reported that its Tessent In-System Test software won the Design Tool and Development Software Product of the Year at the 2025 Electronics Weekly Elektra Awards in London. The company highlighted that the software enables in-field application of manufacturing-quality test patterns to ensure continuous testing, reliability, and performance of semiconductor devices, particularly in HPC and AI applications, while supporting sustainability by extending equipment lifecycles.
StratEdge Corporation reported that its President, Tim Going, MBA, and Vice President, Casey Krawiec, were recognized by IMAPS for outstanding contributions to microelectronics packaging innovation and leadership.
Koh Young was recognized with a productronica Innovation Award for its AI‑powered process optimization solution, which leverages machine learning and advanced analytics to provide real‑time insights and corrective actions that improve manufacturing yield and efficiency, with the company noting that the honor reflects its focus on integrating AI into smart manufacturing workflows.
Industry Events
Syenta announced that Sebastiaan Muller, Head of Sales and Business Development, was included in the speaker lineup for AP International Conference 2026, where he was scheduled to present on heterogeneous integration. The company noted that Muller’s presentation, titled “Localized Electrochemical Manufacturing (LEM): A Scalable High-Density Interconnect Platform for Next-Generation Heterogeneous Integration,” addressed Syenta’s additive manufacturing approach and its potential role in advanced packaging applications, reflecting the conference’s focus on materials, methods, and technologies shaping next-generation chip-level packaging and system integration.
At SEMI’s SEMICON Japan 2025, held December 17–19 at Tokyo Big Sight, over 120,000 attendees gathered for three days of insight into advanced devices, equipment and materials innovation, generative AI, advanced packaging, chiplet technologies, Japan’s semiconductor strategy, and sustainability in the global supply chain. With more than 1,200 exhibitors from 35 countries and approximately 2,900 booths — along with new summits focused on AI & sustainability and metrology & inspection — SEMI reported that the event brought together industry leaders, researchers, and technologists to explore emerging trends and foster collaboration across the semiconductor ecosystem.
Shellback Semiconductor announced its participation in SEMICON Japan 2025, where they invited attendees to visit booth S2608 to explore the company’s latest FSI Mercury upgrades and other advanced semiconductor solutions.
Indium Corporation participated in iTHERM 2025 in Shenzhen, China, where the company engaged with attendees and showcased its portfolio of high-performance metal thermal interface materials (TIMs). The portfolio included compressible, liquid metal, phase-change metal alloy (PCMA), and solder-based TIM solutions, which were highlighted for their role in optimizing heat transfer and supporting reliability in high-performance computing, power electronics, and semiconductor applications.
Additionally. Indium’s Hongwen Zhang presented at ICEE 2025 on advancements in bismuth‑free, indium‑containing lower‑temperature solder alloys, highlighting research outcomes that demonstrate enhanced mechanical performance and reliability at reduced process temperatures, with the company emphasizing the relevance of these materials for next‑generation power electronics and reliability‑critical applications.
Amkor Technology participated in ISAPP 2025, held November 5–7 in Fukuoka, Japan, bringing together global experts on next-generation power packaging and wide bandgap semiconductor technologies. The company reported that Shinji Baba, Vice President of R&D at Amkor Japan, presented “Amkor’s R&D Activities and Power Packaging Roadmap,” highlighting the new Fukuoka R&D center and its role in advancing high-efficiency, high-reliability power packaging for automotive, industrial, and energy applications. Amkor noted strong industry interest in compact, thermally optimized packaging solutions and emphasized collaboration across Japan’s “Silicon Island” ecosystem to support EVs, industrial automation, and renewable energy systems.
PDF Solutions hosted its 2025 Users Conference on December 3-4, featuring main sessions with industry insights and demo stations showcasing the company’s latest innovations. The company reported that the event brought together semiconductor professionals to explore new ideas, exchange knowledge, and experience solutions in action.
Workforce Development
Siemens partnered with the University of Cincinnati to prepare the next generation of semiconductor engineers, addressing the projected need for 100,000 new U.S. semiconductor workers by 2030. The company reported that the collaboration provided students with access to industry-leading electronic design automation software, cooperative education programs alternating between classroom and full-time work, and opportunities to apply skills in real-world projects such as Formula SAE race car simulations and on-campus cleanroom experience, supporting a pathway from classroom learning to career readiness.
Career Advancements and Opportunities
Yield Engineering Systems announced the appointment of Rezwan Lateef as Chief Executive Officer, noting that he previously served as President of the company. YES also acknowledged the leadership of Rama Alapati, who transitioned from the CEO role and continued to support the company in a strategic consulting capacity.
IMAPS announced a call for abstracts for the IMAPS Symposium 2026, scheduled September 28–October 1 at Encore Boston Harbor in Boston, Massachusetts. The company noted that the symposium will feature five technical tracks covering advanced packages and structures, interconnect and bonding technologies, high-reliability and novel system-in-package structures, enabling materials and processes, design and modeling, as well as an interactive poster session, bringing together engineers, researchers, and students across the semiconductor packaging industry to share innovations and advancements.
Amkor Technology is hiring for various positions in Tempe, AZ including: Design Engineer, Supply Chain & Procurement, VP Marketing Communications, Sr. Accountant, Global Accounting. Interested? Learn more here.
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