Apple and Qualcomm are reportedly growing concerned over a tightening supply of a critical but often overlooked material: ultra-thin glass cloth, as reported by Nikkei Asia. This specialized fabric from Japan is the literal foundation of the high-performance chips found in your iPhone and Mac. According to Nikkei, the demand for this material is reaching a breaking point, and the supply chain is struggling to keep pace with the requirements of next-generation hardware.
Glass cloth might not sound like high-tech gear, but it is an essential component of “IC substrates.” These are the thin layers that connect a silicon chip to the device’s main circuit board. For high-end processors like Apple’s A-series or Qualcomm’s Snapdragon, the glass cloth must be incredibly thin and high-quality to ensure speed and energy efficiency.
Currently, the market is dominated by a few specialized Japanese manufacturers, most notably Nitto Boseki (Nittobo). These companies produce the ultra-thin variants required for the world’s most advanced smartphones. Because they hold a near-monopoly on the highest grades of this material, any hiccup in their production sends shockwaves through the entire tech industry.
The primary driver behind this sudden supply squeeze is the global explosion of Artificial Intelligence. High-end AI servers require massive amounts of advanced semiconductors, which in turn use the same premium glass cloth needed for premium smartphones.
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