According to Commercial Times, PC giant HP is rumored to start a new wave of organizational changes in Taiwan on October 15th. In addition to the potential layoffs of 20 to 30 local employees in the R&D department, other senior managers may be subject to the adjustment as well. In response to these rumors, HP Taiwan has not provided any comments.

Business Today indicated that the restructuring of HP Taiwan may be associated with the “Taiwan+1” policy, as supply chains gradually reshuffle to Southeast and South Asia to reduce geopolitcal risks.

Previously, Dell also reduced its workforce as part of a reorganization of its sales teams, as per a report from The Business Times. On the other hand, Dell has already begun producing some of its laptops in India to serve the local market.

Tech companies are now facilitating the relocation of supply chains to reduce the impact of geopolitical risks. A report from Nikkei indicated that HP has significantly reduced the Taiwan team’s influence in procurement decisions and has created related positions in Singapore as part of a major supply chain restructuring intended to mitigate geopolitical risks.

According to Commercial Times, HP announced its adjustment plans in 2022, stating that by the 2025 fiscal year, it would reduce its global workforce by 10%, impacting 4,000 to 6,000 employees. Now, rumors indicate that HP Taiwan’s R&D department is expected to see layoffs of 20 to 30 employees, and even senior executives, including vice presidents, may be affected.

HP reported revenue of USD 13.52 billion for the third quarter of fiscal year 2024 (ending July 31, 2024), marking a 2.4% annual increase, as noted by Commercial Times. This performance exceeded Wall Street’s forecast of USD 13.37 billion and ended eight consecutive quarters of decline, signaling a return to growth.

However, its quarterly net profit was only USD 640 million, reflecting an annual decrease of 16.4%. Additionally, HP has lowered its fiscal year 2024 outlook due to intense market competition. According to Commercial Times, the company now estimates that the full-year adjusted net profit per share will be between USD 3.35 and USD 3.45, lower than its previous forecast of USD 3.30 to USD 3.60.

Business Today mentioned that HP expects that AI PCs will help stimulate market recovery. The company aims to increase AI PC shipments to about 50% of its total PC shipments by 2027, hoping to boost the average selling price by 5 to 10%.

However, Business Today also pointed out that compared to Lenovo and Dell, HP has been relatively slow in deploying AI PCs. If HP hopes to rely on AI PCs for performance growth, it may need to navigate a challenging period ahead.

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• [News] Tech Giants’ Supply Chain Reshuffle: from China to Southeast and South Asia

(Photo credit: HP)

According to reports from the Commercial Times, the PC chip supply chain has seen a surge in activity as government subsidies in mainland China have expanded to cover major cities. This has prompted brands to increase their orders, boosting short-term demand for the current quarter. Related IC design companies are expected to benefit from this trend.

The report reveals that the supply chain is responding to the rollout of home appliance subsidies in China, which initially covered only select cities. As other regions follow suit, demand for replacement and upgrades has surged, prompting brands to increase their stock, leading to more orders for IC suppliers.

However, some IC companies remain cautious, believing that the current demand surge may simply be pulling forward orders that would have been placed in the first quarter of next year. Since the subsidies end by the close of this year, they fear this could lead to a short-lived boom.

On the other hand, more optimistic players believe that as major IC manufacturers like AMD, Qualcomm, and Intel roll out NPUs with over 40 TOPS of computing power, combined with post-pandemic replacement demand, the market will see a significant boost. These companies are also expected to launch products at various price points, making AI-powered PCs more affordable in the coming year.

The report also noted that the PC market is expected to become more competitive as both x86 and Arm architectures begin supporting new AI applications. It is understood that some companies will start purchasing Arm-based PCs next year, signifying that Arm-based PCs have successfully entered the commercial sector, which will have a positive impact on building a complete ecosystem in the future.

Industry sources cited by the Commercial Times believe Qualcomm will be the first to benefit, while MediaTek is gearing up, with its chips expected to debut in the second quarter of next year and enter mass production in the third quarter.

(Photo credit: Samsung)

Samsung’s next-generation flagship phone, the Galaxy S25 series, is set to debut in three months. According to current market rumors, the lineup will still include the S25, S25+, and S25 Ultra models. In addition, Samsung is expected to release a “lite flagship” version, the Galaxy S25 FE. As reported by SamMobile, the S25 FE will be powered by MediaTek’s Dimensity chipset and is slated for release by the end of next year.

Prior to this report, there had been widespread speculation that MediaTek’s Dimensity 9400 would be used in the Galaxy S25 series launching early next year.

However, a recent update from SamMobile, citing @Jukanlosreve on platform X, revealed that the negotiations between Samsung and MediaTek, which initially aimed to include the Dimensity chip in the Galaxy S25, have shifted to placing the Dimensity chip in the S25 FE instead.

The latest information suggests that only the S25 FE will feature the MediaTek Dimensity chipset, while the rest of the S25 series will exclusively run on Qualcomm’s Snapdragon processors.

@Jukanlosreve did not specify the exact model of the chipset for the S25 FE, but SamMobile speculates that it will be the Dimensity 9400, MediaTek’s latest fourth-generation flagship mobile chipset, built on TSMC’s 3nm process, designed to compete with Qualcomm’s new Snapdragon 8 Elite.

(Photo credit: MediaTek)

Rumors suggest that Samsung’s upcoming Galaxy S25 models will adopt a dual-chipset strategy by adopting MediaTek’s Dimensity 9400. This approach is intended to lessen the company’s dependence on Qualcomm and to reduce its chipset costs, according to a report from Wccftech.

While neither Samsung nor MediaTek have confirmed this information, it may have been inadvertently revealed by Google in its blog post, Wccftech notes. In a blog article released by Google DeepMind at the end of September, the progress of AlphaChip, which is the AI division of Google, was discussed, emphasizing how it accelerates and optimizes chip design.

Notably, the article suggests the potential collaboration between Samsung and MediaTek, according to Wccftech.

Although the article does not explicitly mention MediaTek’s Dimensity 9400 or the Galaxy S25 series, it does mention the Dimensity Flagship 5G. This could imply the Dimensity 9400 and the Galaxy S25 series, since the Galaxy S24 series does not currently feature any high-end MediaTek chipsets.

As per a report from TechNews, the Dimensity 9400 has been officially launched today (October 9th), while the Galaxy S25 series is expected to be unveiled early next year, aligning with the details mentioned in the blog article released by Google DeepMind.

It is worth noting that Samsung is initially expected to integrate some of the new Galaxy S25 models with its own Exynos 2500. However, according to Wccftech, due to the unstable yield rates of the 3 nm GAA process, Samsung not only struggled to attract potential consumers but also faced the possibility of delaying the launch schedule for its new flagship chipset.

Nevertheless, as suggested by Wccftech, the Exynos 2500 might not be abandoned. Rumors indicate that it might be used in its ‘price to performance’ Galaxy S25 FE, along with its future foldable smartphones.

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• [News] MediaTek Dimensity 9400 Debuts: All-Big-Core and TSMC 3nm Challenge Qualcomm, Apple
• [News] Samsung’s Memory and Smartphone Divisions Reportedly Eye Collaboration with TSMC and MediaTek
• [News] Despite 3nm Issues, Samsung Plans to Speed up 2nm/1.4nm Expansion Next Year

(Photo credit: Samsung)

Ahead of MediaTek’s official launch of Dimensity 9400, which takes place on October 9^th, rumors have been circulating that Samsung may feature the chip in its Galaxy S25 next year. Now the first smartphone equipped with the chip has surfaced. According to the reports by Gizmochina, Wccftech and mydrivers, Vivo X200 series will reportedly be the first smartphone powered by the Dimensity 9400 chipset.

It is worth noting that Dimensity 9400 will be reportedly be manufactured with TSMC’s 3nm, according to Wccftech. This will also mark the first 3nm chip in the Android ecosystem, mydriver notes.

For more details, Vivo is anticipated to unveil the Vivo X200 series on October 14th, which includes the Vivo X200, Vivo X200 Pro Mini, and Vivo X200 Pro. According to Gizmochina, all the models will be powered by Dimensity 9400.

Dimensity 9400, by introducing the Arm Cortex-X925 super-large core, is said to offer a 36% performance increase and a 41% improvement in AI performance if compared to Cortex-X4, Gizmochina notes.

While MediaTek’s Dimensity 9400 is said to excel in performance, there have been rumors suggesting that the unit price of the SoC has increased by 20%, which could force smartphone manufacturers to adjust the prices of their flagship models, Wccftech notes.

However, as the start price of X200, which is the base model of Vivo’s latest lineup, has been revealed to be 3,999 Yuan (around USD 570) per unit, the aforementioned concern has been eased, Wccftech indicates.

Recent reports indicate that MediaTek’s Dimensity 9400 is priced 20% lower than Qualcomm’s upcoming Snapdragon 8 Gen 4, which enhance the likelihood for Samsung to adopt the chip in its upcoming S25 to reduce the cost.

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• [News] MediaTek Ventures into AI Accelerators, Aiming to Release Dimensity 9400 in October
• [News] MediaTek Sets Dimensity 9400 Launch Date, Ahead of Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 4

(Photo credit: Vivo)