AI Chip Concept Stocks Watch | SMIC (00981.HK) down 5.17%, Applied Materials and Intel to co-develop next-generation AI chip technology

NewTimeSpace News, on 8 October 2026, AI chip stocks traded with a correction while SMIC (00981.HK) weakened. As of 13:30, the company quoted HKD 57.750, down 5.17%.

On the news front, on 6 October 2026, Applied Materials announced a collaboration with Intel to jointly advance chipmaking innovations for next-generation transistors, interconnects and advanced packaging technologies, in order to shorten the time-to-market of advanced semiconductor technologies essential to AI computing. According to the disclosure, the collaboration links Applied Materials' EPIC (Equipment and Process Innovation and Commercialization) Center in Silicon Valley with Intel's research and development campus in Hillsboro, Oregon; teams from both companies are developing next-generation materials, process technologies and device architectures for advanced logic nodes targeting AI workloads, spanning front-end and back-end-of-line advancements including interconnect scaling, and also involving the development of advanced packaging technologies for Foveros-based 3D stacking, aiming to deliver higher interconnect density, improved power delivery and enhanced thermal performance for high-performance compute platforms designed to accelerate emerging agentic AI workloads.

In addition, on 7 October 2026, media reports said that, driven by AI chip demand, the semiconductor packaging and testing company SIGURD MICROELECTRONICS in Taiwan, China saw third-quarter total revenue exceed NTD 6 billion, with monthly revenue above NTD 2 billion for three consecutive months from July to September and cumulative revenue for the first three quarters of NTD 17.346 billion, up 21.2% year on year, with monthly, quarterly and nine-month cumulative revenue all hitting record highs. According to the reports, AI, CPU, GPU, application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs) and silicon photonics have become the company's core growth engines, accounting for 24% of first-half revenue versus 20% a year earlier, with the company targeting more than 30% next year; semiconductor testing capacity remains tight, some memory chip customers are willing to pay a premium to secure capacity, and the company itself has already started raising prices.

Citi believes that, driven by strong AI computing demand, potential upside from AI agents and the rise of the co-packaged optics (CPO) network cycle, TSMC's revenue growth rate is expected to remain above 40% through 2027; given that most of TSMC's AI chip customers, including Nvidia, AMD and Broadcom, are expected to see accelerating growth, TSMC's AI-related revenue growth could nearly double next year; supported by the strong revenue outlook, its capital expenditure could rise further to USD 81 billion in 2027 and USD 90 billion in 2028.

SMIC (00981.HK) Provides IC wafer foundry and related technical services. It is the largest pure-play wafer foundry in China by capacity and offers the broadest coverage of process nodes. Its mature and select advanced process lines address applications including smart terminals, IoT, and computing chips. Based on its periodic disclosures, wafer shipments, capacity utilization, and revenue are at historically high levels.

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