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Microsoft reveals Maia 200 AI chips
Microsoft has unveiled the second generation of its Maia artificial intelligence chips, aiming to compete with chipmakers like Nvidia. Maia 200 chips performs 30% better per dollar than current-generation Microsoft hardware, the company said. It will be used for both Microsoft’s AI models and models like OpenAI’s GPT-5.2. “Today, we’re proud to introduce Maia 200, a breakthrough inference accelerator engineered to dramatically improve the economics of AI token generation,” wrote Microsoft’s executive vice president for Cloud and AI Scott Guthrie. “Maia 200 is part of our heterogenous AI infrastructure and will serve multiple models, including the latest GPT-5.2 models from OpenAI, bringing performance per dollar advantage to Microsoft Foundry and Microsoft 365 Copilot. The Microsoft Superintelligence team will use Maia 200 for synthetic data generation and reinforcement learning to improve next-generation in-house models.” The chips were built using Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC)’s 3nm transistor density process. This is similar to Nvidia’s forthcoming Vera Rubin chips, announced earlier in January. They include three times the FP4 tensor core performance of Amazon’s Trainium chips and FP8 performance
Hardware
Intel stocks rise 11% ahead of earnings report
Intel stocks have climbed to their highest since January 2022 ahead of the company’s earnings report. The company’s stocks soared 11% and surpassed the US$54, reaching an intraday high of $54.13. This continues a rally that lifted it 84% last year, bringing its gains over the past 12 months to 149%. “It’s the most optimistic, I think, people have felt about the company in a long time,” said Ryuta Makino, an analyst at Intel investor Gabelli Funds. The optimism for the company comes from strong sales of Intel’s latest server chips, which analysts believe are benefiting from rising spending on artificial intelligence infrastructure. Intel is also getting a boost from recent indications that the company’s foundry business, which is still seeking an anchor customer, could start to secure orders and become the No. 2 chip foundry behind Taiwan Semiconductor Co and ahead of Samsung. The U.S. government has also become the chipmaker's largest shareholder after an investment of $8.9 billion last year. This is partially because it is the only American company capable of making advanced chips. The government’s stake grew to $14 billion since the deal was agreed to in August, and Nvidia’s stake increased by more than $6 b
Hardware
US reaches chip-making deal with Taiwan
Taiwan and the United States have reached a trade agreement to build computer chip factories in the U.S., according to the U.S. Department of Commerce. The agreement would see Taiwanese chipmakers and technology companies invest at least US$250 billion in production capacity in the U.S. The Taiwanese government would also guarantee US$250 billion in credit for these companies. “We're going to bring it all over so we become self-sufficient in the capacity of building semiconductors,” Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said. In exchange, the U.S. will limit reciprocal tariffs on Taiwan to 15%, down from 20%, and commit to zero reciprocal tariffs on goods such as generic pharmaceuticals, their ingredients, aircraft components, and certain natural resources. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) has bought land and could expand in Arizona as part of the deal, according to Lutnick. “They just bought hundreds of acres adjacent to their property,” he said. “I’ll let them go through with their board and give them time.” Future tariffs under the Trade Expansion Act's Section 232 framework will have some exceptions for companies that are building chips in the U.S. Taiwanese companies are constructing new U.
Hardware
Intel shares surge on praise from Trump
Intel Corp shares rose by their highest amount since September after the chip maker was praised by United States President Donald Trump. This came after Trump met with Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan on Thursday at the White House, where they discussed the company’s new line of processors following the U.S. government’s purchase of shares of the chipmaker. “Intel just launched the first SUB 2 NANOMETER CPU PROCESSOR designed, built, and packaged right here in the U.S.A.,” Trump said in a social media post. “The United States Government is proud to be a Shareholder of Intel, and has already made, through its U.S.A. ownership position, Tens of Billions of Dollars for the American People — IN JUST FOUR MONTHS.” Following the remarks, Intel shares jumped 11% to US$45.55 in New York, the biggest single-day increase for the chipmaker since 18 September. So far for 2026, stocks for Intel have risen 20.60% and 129.76% year-over-year, according to TradingView. The U.S. government took a 10% stake in Intel through a US$8.9 billion investment under the CHIPS and Science Act in August, making the Trump administration a majority shareholder. Since this, the Intel share price has increased by 75%. Other chip companies also experien
Hardware
Trump orders Chinese controlled firm to undo chip deal
A Chinese-controlled company has been ordered by U.S. President Donald Trump to undo an acquisition of United States computer chip assets. HieFo Corporation received the order on Friday requiring it to reverse the US$2.9 million purchase of parts of U.S.-based manufacturer Emcore. The White House said the demand was due to HieFo being “controlled by a citizen of the People’s Republic of China" and posed a national security concern. In 2024 the company acquired the digital chip designs, fabrication, and processing businesses of Emcore. The possibility of diverting the inidium phoshpide chips away from the U.S, has been flagged as a risk, with HieFo ordered to divest all acquired assets within the next 180 days and restrict access to Emcore’s technical information immediately. In a separate statement, the U.S. Treasury Department said the deal came under review after the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) was not notified of it. “CFIUS identified a national security risk arising from the transaction relating to potential access to Emcore’s intellectual property, proprietary know-how, and expertise,” the Treasury Department wrote.

Hardware
U.S. grants import licence to TSMC
The United States has reportedly granted Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) an annual licence to import U.S.-made semiconductor manufacturing equipment into its factory in Nanjing, China. TSMC said the licence from the Department of Commerce would allow U.S. export-controlled equipment to be supplied to its Nanjing facility without individual approvals from vendors, according to a Reuters report. "The U.S. Department of Commerce has granted TSMC Nanjing an annual export license that allows U.S. export-controlled items to be supplied to TSMC Nanjing without the need for individual vendor licenses," TSMC said in a statement to Reuters. The licence "ensures uninterrupted fab operations and product deliveries". South Korea's Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix have also received similar import licences. The U.S. Government has been tightening controls on chip-related exports to China as part of broader efforts to limit Beijing’s access to advanced semiconductor technology. Prior to that major Asian chipmakers operating in China including TSMC, Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix benefited from exemptions known as validated end-user (VEU) status allowing them to receive some U.S. equipment without licences f
Hardware
US bans new foreign drones, hitting China’s DJI
The United States has moved to block the sale of new foreign-made drone models, delivering a significant blow to China’s DJI, the world’s largest drone manufacturer, as Washington intensifies efforts to curb perceived national security risks linked to overseas technology. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) said on Tuesday it had added foreign drone manufacturers, including DJI, to its so-called “Covered List” of entities deemed to “pose an unacceptable risk to the national security of the United States”. FCC Chairman Brendan Carr issued the following statement: “I welcome this Executive Branch national security determination, and I am pleased that the FCC has now added foreign drones and related components, which pose an unacceptable national security risk, to the FCC’s Covered List. "Following President Trump’s leadership, the FCC will work closely with U.S. drone makers to unleash American drone dominance.” The move effectively bans the import and sale of all newly developed drone models and critical equipment from those companies in the US. The decision does not affect drone models that have already been authorised for sale or those currently in operation. The FCC said consumers can continue to use drone
Hardware
US delays China chip tariffs until 2027
The United States will delay tariffs on Chinese semiconductors until 2027, it said on Tuesday (Wednesday AEDT), after China and the U.S. reached an agreement to lower tariffs in October. The U.S.’ previous Joe Biden administration launched a probe into China’s exports of older chips in 2024, alleging unfair trade practices. The investigation found China’s chip exports harmed U.S. commerce, but new tariffs will not be added until June 2027. “Based on information obtained during the investigation, and in consultation with the Section 301 Committee, China’s targeting of the semiconductor industry for dominance is unreasonable and burdens or restricts U.S. commerce and thus is actionable,” the office of the U.S. Trade Representative wrote in a filing. “China’s pursuit of its dominance goals has severely disadvantaged U.S. companies, workers, and the U.S. economy generally through lessened competition and commercial opportunities and through the creation of economic security risks from dependencies and vulnerabilities.” Under a separate probe last year, the U.S. ordered a 50% tariff on Chinese semiconductor imports to be imposed by the end of 2025. The U.S. Trade Representative’s filing says tariffs on Chinese chips will re
Hardware
US reviewing new China export licences for Nvidia chips
The United States has reportedly begun a review that could see some of Nvidia’s most powerful artificial intelligence chips sold in China, reversing export restrictions. Nvidia’s H200 chips are its second-most powerful, after its flagship Blackwell chips. The U.S. Commerce Department has sent licence applications for H200 sales in China to the Departments of State, Energy, and Defense, Reuters reported. U.S. President Donald Trump said earlier this month that the U.S. planned to allow H200 sales in China. “I have informed President Xi [Jinping], of China, that the United States will allow NVIDIA to ship its H200 products to approved customers in China, and other Countries, under conditions that allow for continued strong National Security,” he wrote on Truth Social. Xi “responded positively”, according to Trump, but China is seeking to limit access to H200 chips over national security concerns. China’s regulators have discussed requiring a governmental approval process for H200 buyers, the Financial Times reported, though a final decision has not been made. The Departments of State, Energy, and Defense have 30 days to review the H200’s prospective licences. Nvidia has also reportedly told its Chinese buyers that it