Media Tour | One Exhibition, A Glimpse into the Next Chapter of China‘s Semiconductor Industry

From September 9 to 11, 2026, the International Integrated Circuit Innovation Expo (IICIE 2026) was held at the Shenzhen World Exhibition & Convention Center, China. Under the theme “Cross-Sector Convergence, Full-Chain Collaboration: Building a Distinctive Semiconductor Ecosystem,” this year‘s expo was co-located with the China International Optoelectronic Exposition (CIOE 2026) and the 23rd Shenzhen International Electronics & Embedded Expo (elexcon 2026). The three-show platform spanned 320,000 square meters and hosted over 5,000 exhibiting companies, with dedicated zones covering chips and chip design, wafer fabrication, packaging and testing, equipment, materials, and core components — mapping the entire integrated circuit value chain.

Image source: TrendForce Compound Semiconductor

Chip Design: The Arena of Computing Power

Chip design was among the most densely populated sectors, with exhibits spanning AI computing, automotive-grade chips, security chips, and edge SoCs. GUOXIN MICRO presented security chips and automotive electronics solutions, Ingenic demonstrated edge AI processors for wearables and intelligent vision, and BYD Semiconductor showcased automotive-grade power and intelligent driving chips. The design ecosystem’s focus on AI and automotive applications was unmistakable.

• GUOXIN MICRO

GUOXIN MICRO, together with its subsidiaries TONGXIN MICRO and GUOXIN JINGYUAN, delivering keynote speeches at two core forums on commercial aerospace and automotive electronics innovation at IICIE 2026.

TONGXIN MICRO organized its display into two pillars: security chips and automotive electronics. In security, its eSIM products have shipped over ten million units in the global mobile phone market, powering the commercial launch of China’s first domestically developed eSIM chip phone. Security SEs and MCUs target consumer and industrial IoT, while anti-counterfeiting authentication chips have been adopted by top-tier global OEMs, serving tens of millions of terminals cumulatively. On the automotive side, automotive security chips have broken the ten-million-unit shipment mark with leading domestic market share; automotive control chips are now in mass production across multiple automakers, with high-end powertrain domain MCU technology leading domestically. Power devices rounded out the display.

Guoxin Jingyuan presented three product lines, each with a clear positioning. The ultra-miniature series relies on fully automated IN-LINE technology to achieve large-scale mass production via a 4.5-generation automated line, targeting consumer terminals such as smartphones, wearables, drones, and medical monitors. The ultra-high-frequency series has overcome Q-MEMS lithography process barriers to enable domestic mass production of ultra-high-frequency fundamental quartz crystal oscillators, aimed at data centers, AI inference, servers, optical modules, satellite communications, and commercial aerospace. The ultra-stable series has obtained AEC-Q200 and Q100 automotive-grade dual certification, covering core automotive electronic control and communication applications.

The standout impression: eSIM and automotive-grade security chips are now speaking through tens of millions of units in shipment data. China’s automotive-grade chips are moving from isolated breakthroughs toward large-scale commercial deployment.

• INGENIC

INGENIC showcased its full range of computing chips, spanning AI wearables, AIoT, and intelligent vision.

The CW080 is built for AI glasses, smart wearables, and micro vision terminals. Housed in a QFN90 ultra-small package, it integrates a 1TOPS@INT8 NPU, supports 4K@30fps H.265 encoding, 12MP photography, and on-device EIS stabilization with built-in DDR. Sleep power consumption is approximately 1mW, and operating power consumption is reduced by 30% compared to the previous generation — a wearable AI vision solution balancing performance and battery life. The X3000 targets edge intelligent commercial and industrial applications, combining an XBurst2 core, NPU, and Victory0 (RISC-V) processor for edge AI plus real-time control. The X2600 and X1600 cover commercial/industrial multi-core heterogeneous and AIoT embedded markets respectively. The T33 is an SoC for intelligent vision, running at 1.0GHz, supporting the Magik2.0 algorithm platform and 2880×1620 resolution, widely used in IPC cameras.

Image source: INGENIC

From AI glasses SoCs to IPC main controllers, the entire product line is graded by application scenario — the implementation trajectory of edge AI chips is more telling than raw parameters.

• BYD SEMICONDUCTOR

 BYD SEMICONDUCTOR centered its exhibit on automotive-grade semiconductors, spanning IGBTs, SiC power devices, BMS analog front-ends, and intelligent driving chips.

Image source: BYD SEMICONDUCTOR

The super trench gate automotive-grade IGBT chip IGBT8.0 features a new generation of self-developed ultra-fine trench technology. Ultra-deep sub-micron trench gates and ultra-high current density deliver industry-leading turn-off losses; the ultra-large single-chip design enables a maximum single-chip current rating of 700A, with a 30% increase in driving power. The 305A SiC module is a 1200V automotive-grade power module built on self-developed SiC MOSFET chips, combining double-sided silver sintering and laminated laser welding for automotive-grade reliability and extremely low parasitic inductance. The displayed SiC wafer marks the highest voltage rating product to enter mass production and vehicle installation in automotive motor drives. The automotive-grade 4nm intelligent driving chip features a 16-core CPU, with unit computing power consumption 20% lower than comparable products, computing power utilization doubled, and support for L3/L4 autonomous driving.

Every exhibit was anchored in mass production and vehicle deployment. IGBT8.0, SiC wafers, and4nm intelligent driving chips all trace their path to the vehicle. Automotive-grade chip competition has entered the mass production verification phase.

Semiconductor Equipment: The Depth of Capability

The equipment zone was equally crowded, covering thin film deposition, CMP polishing, ion implantation, bonding, and metrology & inspection. Hwatsing Technology presented CMP and ion implantation tools, Piotech showcased thin film deposition and hybrid bonding equipment, and Jingce Electronics displayed metrology and inspection solutions spanning from silicon wafers to finished chips.

• HWATSING TECHNOLOGY

HWATSING TECHNOLOGY exhibited its full series of advanced semiconductor equipment and process integration solutions, with chemical mechanical polishers, thinning and polishing integrated machines, single-wafer cleaners, and more all on display. Two systems for advanced processes drew particular attention.

The Universal-300FS chemical mechanical polisher employs a single-head, single-platen polishing system with eight independent pneumatic zone polishing heads and multiple real-time detection technologies. Combined with intelligent pad conditioning, vertical scrubbing, and pull-dry technology, it achieves ultra-clean cleaning results, supporting logic chips, memory chips, advanced packaging, large silicon wafers, power devices, and image sensors. The iHQ-900E medium-current ion implanter relies on an advanced three-magnet architecture for excellent ion beam angle precision and beam shape control, ensuring highly accurate wafer implantation doses. It is suited for FinFET logic devices and DRAM, 3D NAND, and other memory chip mass production processes, with metal contamination control meeting the stringent demands of CMOS image sensors, while its high-temperature implantation module supports SiC power device doping.

Image source: HWATSING TECHNOLOGY

From CMP to ion implantation, the expanding equipment portfolio signals that domestic companies are moving from single-point tools toward platform-based supply. Advanced process parameters have become the lingua franca of booth’s presentations.

• JINGCE ELECTRONICS

JINGCE ELECTRONICS showcased semiconductor full-domain metrology & inspection solutions covering the complete chain from silicon wafers through wafers to chips.

On the advanced packaging front, the Dolphin500 wafer defect inspection system features bright-field, dark-field, and wide-band PL illumination, with traditional and AI algorithms working in tandem to support efficient detection for homogeneous and heterogeneous integration — meeting advanced packaging mass production inspection needs. In memory testing, the JH8800 memory chip FT test equipment uses self-developed main control IP protocol boards and DSA adapter boards, supporting eMMC/UFS/NAND 512 DUT parallel testing across a wide temperature range from −40°C to +125°C, with significantly improved efficiency. The 2D MEMS vertical probe card for AI computing chips employs self-developed, self-manufactured 2D MEMS needles to achieve high density, high parallelism, and high-frequency testing, with a maximum pin count of 40,000. Additional exhibits included the JH59150A logic chip BI test system, the JHP580 bipolar pulse test system, and PXIe series high-precision digital source measurement units.

Image source: JINGCE ELECTRONICS

From wafer defect inspection to FT testing to probe cards, the puzzle of localization in the metrology & inspection segment is being steadily assembled. AI algorithm support emerged as a common thread across multiple manufacturers this year.

• PIOTECH

PIOTECH highlighted 3D IC equipment technology achievements, demonstrating domestic breakthroughs in advanced processes and advanced packaging.

Image source: PIOTECH

Image source: PIOTECH

The VS-300T Astra-s SiN targets precision deposition of high-performance silicon nitride dielectric thin films for advanced logic metal gate spacer sidewalls, single diffusion break isolation, and memory bitline sidewalls. Within-wafer uniformity, defect control, step coverage, and deposition rate reach internationally advanced levels, and the compact architecture accommodates four reaction chambers. The PF-300T Flora is a flowable chemical vapor deposition system for high-aspect-ratio trench and micro-gap filling; through UV or steam curing and oxidation, it achieves void-free, seam-free filling of structures with aspect ratios above 8:1, and has entered industrial use. The Pleione 300 HS chip-to-wafer hybrid bonding equipment for advanced packaging performs direct room-temperature bonding without media or adhesives, and can select known-good dies to participate in bonding to raise yield, applied in compound semiconductor wafer reconstruction.

Seeing hybrid bonding equipment alongside traditional deposition tools signals that domestic equipment makers have extended their reach to the frontier of advanced packaging. 3D IC is a destination no player can afford to ignore.

Semiconductor Materials: The Cornerstone of Semiconductors

The materials zone concentrated on key inputs: electronic chemicals, sputtering targets, and CMP slurries. Xilong Scientific presented a full line of wet electronic chemicals; Omat Advanced Materials exhibited targets and high-purity materials, and Anji Technology displayed CMP slurries already in mass production at mainstream nodes. Collectively, the exhibits reflected a relatively complete supply system for cleaning and etching, polishing and planarization, and sputtering target materials.

• XILONG SCIENTIFIC

XILONG SCIENTIFIC made its first appearance at IICIE with a comprehensive lineup of wet electronic chemicals and supporting solutions, drawing a large number of professional visitors from semiconductor, display panel, and integrated circuit sectors. General-purpose wet electronic chemicals — sulfuric acid, hydrochloric acid, nitric acid, phosphoric acid, hydrofluoric acid, hydrogen peroxide, ammonia water, isopropanol, among others — were displayed alongside functional wet electronic chemicals (etchants, developers, strippers, diluents, cleaning agents) and other categories including n-heptane, n-hexane, dibutyl phthalate, and 1,4-dioxane. Together, they offered one-stop high-purity chemical solutions for cleaning, etching, stripping, and other critical steps, attracting sustained customer interest. XILONG SCIENTIFIC is a key enterprise in China’s chemical reagents and wet electronic chemicals sector.

Image source: XILONG SCIENTIFIC

In wet electronic chemicals, the competition is increasingly about category breadth and bulk supply capability. The complete range — from general-purpose to functional — reflects how common domestic material substitution in mature processes has become.

• OMAT 

OMAT ADVANCED MATERIALS participated under the theme “Contributing High-End Materials to the Integrated Circuit Industry,” concentrating on four core product categories. On display were 12-inch copper (single-piece) and 12-inch titanium (single-piece) targets, alongside aluminum, cobalt, phosphor copper, tantalum, and tungsten-titanium products. High-purity indium wire, foil, and spheres, liquid metal, and tantalum pentoxide formed a high-purity material matrix. Tungsten components, aluminum oxide, zirconium oxide, ceramic structural parts, and ceramic tubes completed the exhibit. OMAT ADVANCED MATERIALS is a major player in China’s sputtering target field, with products widely deployed in semiconductor, display panel, and other high-end manufacturing sectors.

Image source: OMAT ADVANCED MATERIALS

Placing targets, high-purity metals, and ceramic components on a single booth signals a move toward material integration. Single-point supply is shifting toward multi-category collaboration, reflecting the growing maturity and breadth of the domestic materials ecosystem.

• ANJI TECHNOLOGY

Anji Technology’s copper and copper barrier CMP slurries are deployed for planarization of copper interconnect layers in integrated circuits and have entered mass production across logic and memory chip processes. Next-generation node products are concurrently under development and validation. Anji Microelectronics (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. builds on a foundation of technological innovation and intellectual property, guided by the strategic vision “Rooted in China, Serving the World.” The company has established a “3+1” technology platform centered on micro-processing of liquid and solid substrate surfaces and core capabilities in high-end chemical formulation, targeting optimal process and material solutions across the chip manufacturing flow.

Image source: ANJI TECHNOLOGY

Mass production and advanced-node verification are progressing in tandem. Domestic materials suppliers have aligned their development cadence with leading-edge node roadmaps — the most significant signal emerging from this year’s materials segment.

Find Industry Signals Through the Booths

This year‘s expo had over 1,000 exhibiting companies, covering the entire chain from chip design to core parts, with the display scale of equipment, materials, and components significantly increased. The three-exhibition linkage format allowed exhibitors and visitors from semiconductors, optoelectronics, and embedded electronics fields to exchange on the same stage.

From the overall exhibition, several main lines run through multiple segments.

1. AI computing power was the most      densely exhibited direction at this year’s expo, showing characteristics      of extending from data centers to the edge: process and specifications of      computing chips continue to upgrade, testing is evolving toward high      density, high frequency, and high parallelism, advanced packaging has new      process options such as room-temperature direct bonding, and peripheral      components such as crystal oscillators are simultaneously upgrading toward      high frequency and low jitter.

2. Automotive-grade semiconductors      have entered a competitive stage centered on mass production verification.      Power device single-chip specifications and voltage ratings continue to      rise, SiC is landing in the motor drive field, intelligent driving chips      are advancing toward advanced processes, and automotive-grade      certification has become a basic threshold.

3. Localization of equipment, materials, and components shows characteristics of moving from single-point substitution      to complete-set supply: process equipment extends from single equipment to      platform-based supply, materials shift from single-product support to      multi-category combinations, and metrology & inspection covers the      complete chain from front-end to back-end.

The expo offers a window into the evolving structure of China’s semiconductor supply chain. Across the booths, AI computing power and automotive‑grade applications emerge as the dual forces driving multiple segments, while the localized supply base in equipment, materials, and components has taken initial shape. The focal point of industry competition is shifting from product introduction to mass production verification — a trajectory that will define what comes next.

We will continue to dig deep into the real needs of the industry, iterate and upgrade exhibition content and supporting services, continue to create multiple high-standard industry theme activities, and join hands with colleagues across the industry to embark on a new journey for the semiconductor industry.