The result: IC mask revenue fell about 5% even as demand for leading‑edge AI chips stayed strong. As a photomask maker we can be squeezed by the AI boom because our demand follows design releases, not wafer starts. This quarter three things delayed those releases at once: fabs ran so full on AI logic and memory they could not accommodate new design releases; a surge in memory prices and supply constraints pushed device makers to delay consumer‑product launches while they secured memory; and geopolitical uncertainty, including the U.S.–Iran conflict, added to the caution.
← stream@PLAB solid