12-09 Week: Monday is a new beginning, and let’s recap last week — Fitbit acquires Pebble; Nokia Android phone to launch in Jun 2017; Qualcomm ARM chipset can run Win10; etc.
Monday is a new beginning, and let’s recap last week:
Headlines:
- Motorola plans to release at least 12 new ones each year
- Xiaomi is one of the top buyers of US patents for 2016
- HMD Global indicates that the first Android-powered Nokia smartphones are expected to hit the market by June 2017
- LeEco reportedly is restructuring and optimizing the company’s business, which would include laying off 10% of its workforce
- HTC has not given up and it is in fact hard at work on ‘future flagship smartphones’
- OPPO will begin to market its smartphones in the US as it aims to further ramp its shipments in overseas markets
- Pebble has confirmed that Fibit has agreed to acquire key Pebble assets (i.e., software assets)
- TSMC plans to build a new manufacturing site with investment totaling NTD500B (USD15.6B)
- The rumors of a deal between AMD and Intel first emerged in a forum post from Kyle Bennett, chief editor at HardOCP
- Qualcomm announced that through a collaboration with Microsoft, its next generation ARM-based chips would be able to run legacy Win32 programs (including Windows 10)
- Samsung Electronics has recently signed a contract with Tesla regarding ASIC (Application-Specific Integrated Circuit) foundry
- ARM announced that it has licensed its Artisan physical IP platform for TSMC’s 7nm FinFET process technology to Xilinx
- Truly Opto-Electronics has produced 5.7” sample AMOLED panels at an existing factory acquired from Samsung Display
- Samsung is developing 2 types of foldable smartphones, and this development will be part of its ‘two-track strategy’
- Harman, recently acquired by Samsung, has made a strategic investment in Navdy
- Nanya Technology has announced the completion of its investment in Micron through private placement, and expects Micron’s takeover of Inotera Memories to materialize on 6 Dec. 2016
- Samsung SDI and Lucid Motors announced a strategic partnership for battery cell supply
- Foxconn, a major supplier to Apple, confirmed in a statement it is “in preliminary discussions regarding a potential investment” that would expand its current US operations
Numbers:
- Qualcomm CDMA Technologies (QCT) tops the projected ranking of the top 10 fabless IC design houses worldwide based on annual revenues for 2016, according to TrendForce’s analysis
- According to Counterpoint Research, Samsung Gear VR becomes a strong contender in its own right, crossing USD1B in sales in 2016
- Total wearables shipments reached 23M in 3Q16, according to IDC
- Top 17 tech trends for 2017
- 21 defining moments, all of which they predict will occur by 2030
- 10 potential grey swans (the unlikely but impactful events that) to worry about for 2017
