Chip chemicals and cybercrime crackdowns

Hi everyone!

I hope you're having a great summer. This is Cheng Ting-Fang, your #techAsia host for this week, writing from my home office as the first typhoon of the year sweeps through Taiwan with strong winds and heavy rain.

A few days ago, I visited the newly expanded workspace of Advantest, the world's largest maker of chip-testing equipment, in northern Hsinchu. Wu Wan-Kun, president and CEO of Advantest Taiwan, gave us a tour. I was surprised to find that the office was a stark departure from the typical, dull workspace often seen in much of Asia. Instead, it resembled the trendy coworking spaces of U.S. tech giants like Google. With various open areas, ample natural light, and flexible seating, employees are free to choose where they sit when they come in. The office also includes a dedicated quiet zone equipped with large monitors and ergonomic chairs. There is even a small indoor putting green for golf. This modern and cozy office design suggests a post-pandemic shift in the chip industry away from the traditionally rigid work culture, aimed at attracting top young talent.

"Many of the young staff love to work in the cafeteria. It's flexible," Wu said. Advantest is considering adding offices and additional team members for engineering and sales in more Taiwanese cities, including Chiayi, a traditionally agricultural town where TSMC is currently building its first facility, an advanced chip packaging plant for AI computing chips.

"Our business in Taiwan is growing very fast thanks to the AI and high-performance computing boom." he said, adding that demand was "much, much higher than expected" because new AI chips require more complicated testing processes. This has created a happy problem for Advantest. Its machines