AI growth is increasingly becoming a manufacturing, packaging and deployment challenge — not just a computing one.
Updated
May 26, 2026 5:28 PM
Taipei 101 and Taipei Nan Shan Plaza, viewed from Elephant Mountain. PHOTO: UNSPLASH
As AI companies continue scaling larger models and data centers, the pressure is no longer falling only on chip design. Manufacturing capacity, advanced packaging and infrastructure deployment are becoming equally important parts of the AI race. AMD’s latest investment announcement reflects how quickly that shift is accelerating.
The US chipmaker announced plans to invest more than US$10 billion across Taiwan’s semiconductor and manufacturing ecosystem to support next-generation AI infrastructure. The investment focuses on expanding partnerships and increasing advanced packaging capacity needed for future AI systems.
The announcement highlights a growing reality across the AI industry. Building powerful AI chips is no longer enough on its own. Companies now also need the manufacturing networks, packaging technologies and supply chain coordination required to deploy AI infrastructure at global scale.
AMD’s investments center heavily around advanced chip packaging, an area becoming increasingly critical as AI systems demand higher performance and greater power efficiency. Traditional chip architectures are struggling to keep pace with the size and complexity of modern AI workloads. Advanced packaging helps connect processors, memory and computing systems more efficiently while managing power and cooling limitations inside large-scale AI environments.
The company said it is working with Taiwan-based partners including ASE, SPIL and PTI to develop next-generation packaging technologies for its upcoming 6th Gen AMD EPYC processors, codenamed “Venice.” AMD also said it had qualified what it described as the industry’s first 2.5D panel-based EFB interconnect technology alongside PTI.
At the center of the broader strategy is AMD Helios, the company’s rack-scale AI infrastructure platform scheduled for deployment beginning in the second half of 2026. The platform combines AMD Instinct MI450X GPUs, 6th Gen EPYC CPUs, networking systems and AMD’s ROCm software stack into integrated AI infrastructure systems designed for hyperscale deployment.
Rather than selling individual processors alone, companies are increasingly building complete AI infrastructure platforms that combine hardware, software, cooling systems and power management into unified deployments. That transition is reshaping how AI infrastructure is designed, manufactured and delivered.
Taiwan is also becoming more deeply embedded in that process. AMD’s investment spans not only semiconductor packaging companies but also manufacturing and system integration partners including Sanmina, Wiwynn, Wistron and Inventec. The partnerships reflect Taiwan’s growing role as one of the operational centers of the global AI infrastructure economy.
Dr. Lisa Su, Chair and CEO of AMD, said: “As AI adoption accelerates, our global customers are rapidly scaling AI infrastructure to meet growing compute demand. By combining AMD leadership in high-performance computing with the Taiwan ecosystem and our strategic global partners, we are enabling integrated, rack-scale AI infrastructure that helps customers accelerate deployment of next-generation AI systems”.
Power efficiency is becoming another major challenge shaping AI infrastructure decisions. As AI workloads consume more electricity and generate more heat, infrastructure providers are increasingly being forced to rethink cooling systems, interconnect technologies and deployment economics.
AMD’s announcement signals how the AI competition is evolving beyond model development and raw computing power. The next stage may depend just as heavily on who can manufacture, package and deploy AI infrastructure fast enough to support global demand.
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The funding highlights how service robotics is shifting from niche deployments to scaled commercial use across global markets
Updated
May 14, 2026 3:02 PM
An autonomous service robot with a cat face design standing inside a McDonalds restaurant. PHOTO: ADOBE STOCK
Pudu Robotics, a Shenzhen-based startup building robots for commercial environments, has raised nearly US$150 million in a new funding round, pushing its valuation past US$1.5 billion. The raise brings the company’s total funding to more than US$300 million.
The company focuses on service robotics across sectors such as delivery, cleaning and industrial logistics. Its systems are used in places like retail stores, warehouses and public venues where routine tasks can be automated. Over time, Pudu has expanded from single-purpose machines to a broader portfolio that combines hardware with AI-driven navigation and coordination.
The funding is expected to support several areas of growth. These include further development of its AI systems, expansion of its product range and continued international rollout. The company also plans to invest in manufacturing and supply chain capacity, suggesting a focus on scaling production alongside demand.
Pudu’s recent growth provides some context for the raise. The company reported a doubling of revenue by 2025, with its cleaning robots now accounting for the majority of its business. Its industrial delivery robots have also seen early traction, with thousands of units deployed within a year of launch.
Its products are already in use with large global retailers including Carrefour, Walmart and EDEKA. Industry estimates place Pudu among the largest players in commercial service robotics, with a leading share of the global market.
Technically, the company develops much of its core stack in-house, including navigation systems, multi-robot coordination software and motion control. This allows its robots to operate in complex real-world environments where multiple machines need to move and work together.
“This financial milestone is a powerful confirmation of Pudu’s industry leadership, the strength of its products and technology, its global brand, and its commercial infrastructure. With the support of our strategic investors and industry partners, Pudu will continue to push the boundaries of embedded AI and business service robotics. We remain committed to innovating with an inventor’s spirit and leveraging a global vision to accelerate robot adoption, thereby elevating the industry to new heights in the global value chain”. said Felix Zhang, founder and CEO of Pudu Robotics.
The funding round points to a broader shift in the sector. As service robotics moves from pilot deployments to wider adoption, companies are increasingly being judged on their ability to scale production and operate across markets, not just on the novelty of their technology.