US-China Tensions & the Transformation of Penang's Tech Industry

Tiny semiconductors are the hidden engines in today’s tech marvels, from artificial intelligence (AI) to electric cars. The semiconductor industry continues to cram an increasing number of elements onto integrated circuits. In 1965, Gordon Moore, a founder of Intel, predicted that the number of transistors on chips would double every two years, a phenomenon referred to as Moore’s Law. Remarkably, the industry has mostly kept pace with Moore’s prediction—Apple’s M2 Ultra, for example, contains a staggering 134 billion transistors.

Miniaturisation may be hitting a wall, but chip advancements are surging ahead. Design innovations like improved architecture and 3D stacking are cramming more power into existing transistors. For instance, Apple’s groundbreaking M-series chips condense immense processing power for next-generation smartphones and laptops. Specialised AI chips further accelerate application-specific performance, while innovations in compound semiconductors, like silicon carbide and gallium nitride, promise breakthroughs in data centres, cars and communications.