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TSMC Reports: Can AI Demand Keep Growing?
Reporting its first quarterly profit rise in a year, the Taiwanese chip giant [TSM] beat expectations on its projected revenue: the firm anticipates a figure of between $19.6bn and $20.4bn in Q2, versus estimates of some $19.1bn, according to Bloomberg. It also confirmed plans to spend up to $32bn this year. This may reassure investors who are concerned that artificial intelligence (AI) demand is unsustainable; however, CEO CC Wei said TSMC was revising downward its expectations for semiconductor market growth in 2024.
Huawei Renews Assault on Apple
Thursday saw Huawei launch its latest smartphone. The cheapest model in the new Pura 70 series costs RMB5,499, while the most expensive model, the Ultra edition, costs some RMB9,999 — the same price as some iPhone models. Indeed, Huawei will be hoping that this release builds on the momentum established by the breakthrough Mate 60 device, which helped the homegrown firm chip away at Apple’s [AAPL] predominance in the segment.
Nokia Profit Miss
“We remain confident in a stronger second half and achieving our full-year outlook,” said Nokia [NOK] CEO Pekka Lundmark in a statement after the Finish telecom gear maker reported a smaller-than-expected rise in operating profit on Thursday. The firm logged €597m, versus €479m a year earlier; analysts polled by LSEG had anticipated this figure would be €663m. Like rival Ericsson [ERIC], Nokia’s sales have been affected by reduced spending on 5G technology.
Will Micron Be the Next CHIPS Winner?
According to unnamed sources quoted by Bloomberg, Micron [MU], the US’ biggest chipmaker, is to receive some $6.1bn in grants from the Commerce Department, to go towards domestic factory projects. Intel [INTC] and TSMC have already received grants and loans under the initiative. The Micron share price was up as much as 2.6% in late trading following the news, on top of year-to-date gains of 36%.
Cisco Develops AI/Cybersecurity Offering
“This is not a product, but a new architecture,” Jeetu Patel, Cisco’s [CSCO] Executive Vice President and General Manager of Security and Collaboration, told CNBC in an interview. Called HyperShield, it deploys AI to protect applications, devices and data across public and private data centres, clouds and physical locations, according to a company press release seen by CNBC. Its launch follows on from Cisco’s $28bn acquisition of cybersecurity firm Splunk last year.
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