Artificial intelligence for “ubiquitous computing” is a “recent development” in the semiconductor industry, and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSM) is well-positioned to “ride on this trend,” CEO Mark Liu said on a Thursday earnings call. “We are in a new era where billions of devices are connected at all times and computing takes place at any time and in any place,” said Liu. That’s what TSM means by ubiquitous computing, he said. In smartphones, for example, more intelligent features such as voice, image recognition and AI for decision-making will further increase handsets’ “computing power and silicon content,” he said. Given the smartphone’s “vast established subscription base,” AI for ubiquitous computing “is the best launch pad for new consumer hardware and software innovation,” he said. The trend of “ubiquitous AI” will show up in many IoT and consumer devices, such as robots, drones, surveillance devices, smart TVs and set-top boxes, he said. “Ubiquitous AI will also be widely used in the fast-developing autonomous car market.” AI will require a “very intensive localized parallel computing capability, which drive up the silicon content” in a device, he said. The “proliferation” of AI will demand “insatiable computing capability from semiconductors,” and TSM is developing “various technologies and innovation platforms” to satisfy this industry trend, he said.

Intel representatives met with Julius Knapp, chief of the Office of Engineering and Technology, and other OET officials on the FCC’s controversial 2015 NPRM proposing new RF device certification rules (see 1510130052). Discussion focused on modifying the rules to permit certification of a “family of devices” and on the rules for device labeling, said a filing in docket 15-170. “To accommodate smaller devices, reduce burdens on manufacturers, and eliminate potential consumer confusion, the labels required under Sections 2.803 and 2.805 be shortened to simply read ‘This device has not been authorized by the FCC.’”

Altair Semiconductor launched an LTE chipset with global band support, advanced security and location capability, said the company in a Wednesday announcement. The ALT1250 supports CAT-M1 and NB1 networks and includes a wideband RF front-end that supports “unlimited” combinations of LTE bands within a single hardware design; an integrated GPS receiver; a multilayer and hardware-based security framework; an internal application multipoint control unit subsystem; and packaging that enables low-cost printed circuit board manufacturing, said the company.

Toshiba began construction Thursday on a semiconductor fabrication plant and R&D center at its Yokkaichi Operations facility in Mie prefecture, Japan, it announced. Fab 6 will produce BiCS Flash, Toshiba’s 3D flash memory technology using flash memory cells stacked on a silicon substrate that offers density improvements over planar NAND flash, said the company. Phase one of construction is scheduled for completion summer 2018, Toshiba said. The Memory R&D center adjacent to the fab, which will develop BiCS Flash and new memory devices, is scheduled for completion this December, it said.

MediaTek launched a 16-nanometer ARM octa-core mobile processor for dual-camera smartphones, it said in a Wednesday news release. The MediaTek Helio P25 boasts camera effects including shallow depth of field and high-performance auto exposure in any lighting scene, with resolution of 24 megapixels for a single camera or 13 megapixels each for dual cameras. The processor uses a 16nm FinFET process node said to provide a 25 percent improvement in power efficiency. The chip supports high-resolution 4K video and high dynamic range, said the company. Smartphones using the P25 are expected to come on the market this quarter.

Toshiba added to its small load switch IC lineup for mobile devices, it said in a Thursday news release. Seventeen new parts in two product families allow for design flexibility in smartphones, tablets, laptop PCs and wearables, said the company. The low-power devices are said to have built-in protection functions for current limit, thermal shutdown and inrush current reduction.

Fabless semiconductor company Peraso Technologies will show 802.11ad implementations at CES, including 4K wireless gaming and wireless networking, said the company in an announcement. Demonstrations will feature Peraso's 60-GHz WiGig W110 USB 3.0 adapter and W120 WiGig phased array chipset targeted to bandwidth-intensive applications such as gaming and virtual reality, said the company. WiGig boasts high data rates more than five times that of 802.11ac, solving congestion issues associated with standard Wi-Fi, it said. Peraso’s WiGig applications at CES include multi-gigabit 802.11ad wireless connectivity, multi-vendor 802.11ad access point interoperability, 4K WiGig wireless display and gaming, and WiGig wireless docking. Peraso predicts WiGig will be a “fundamental communications technology" in virtually all consumer electronic devices over the next three to five years. Peraso’s chipsets, currently in production, will be in routers, docking stations, USB adapters and other devices in 2017, it said.

THX partnered with Triad Semiconductor to manufacture the ASIC (application-specific integrated circuit) for its AAA headphone amplifier technology, it said Tuesday. The TSTHX-88 ASIC reduces harmonic, intermodulation, and crossover distortion by 20 times, to less than -126 dB, and uses “near-zero” bias current and advanced Class G power management to cut power consumption by 10 times for long battery life, said the company. The chip is designed for digital, wireless and noise-canceling headphones; virtual reality headsets; portable media players; notebook PCs; and tablets and will debut at CES 2018, THX said.

Qualcomm updated the Quick Charge technology in the upcoming Snapdragon 835 processor due to ship in commercial devices in first-half 2017, it announced Thursday. Quick Charge 4 delivers faster charge times and higher efficiency than previous versions, offering five hours of smartphone use after five minutes of charging, said the company. Quick Charge 4 integrates USB Type-C and USB-PD support along with the Intelligent Negotiation for Optimum Voltage power-management algorithm that automatically determines and selects the optimal power transfer level for a given thermal condition, said the company. More than 100 Quick Charge compatible mobile devices are available.

Samsung will invest more than $1 billion by first half 2017 at its Austin semiconductor facility, it said in a Tuesday announcement. The investment will be used to shore up Samsung’s current System LSI business to meet demand for advanced SoC products for mobile and other electronic devices, said Samsung.