United Microelectronics Corporation (UMC) has achieved a major milestone by securing an advanced packaging contract from Qualcomm for high-performance computing (HPC) applications. This marks UMC’s entry into a domain traditionally dominated by giants like TSMC, Intel, and Samsung, as reported by Economic Daily News. The deal underscores UMC’s growing expertise in advanced packaging technology and its ambitions to compete in emerging markets such as AI PCs, automotive electronics, and AI servers.

According to industry sources, Qualcomm will continue to rely on TSMC for chip production using advanced process nodes, while UMC will take charge of the critical packaging phase, leveraging its innovative hybrid bonding technology. UMC’s wafer-on-wafer (WoW) hybrid bonding process, which integrates chips directly at the wafer level, shortens signal transmission paths. This enhancement significantly boosts computational performance without requiring further advancements in the chip fabrication process itself.

This contract represents a breakthrough for UMC in the advanced packaging sector, a space long dominated by TSMC, Intel, and Samsung. Qualcomm’s decision to adopt UMC’s cutting-edge technology reflects a departure from traditional solder-ball packaging methods, enabling superior chip-to-chip integration and reduced signal latency—key advantages for high-speed computing applications.

UMC’s capabilities in advanced packaging have been strengthened by collaborations with its subsidiaries, Faraday Electronics and Silicon Integrated Systems, as well as its memory partner, Winbond. The company is also actively building an advanced packaging ecosystem to solidify its position in this competitive sector.

Industry experts predict that Qualcomm’s HPC chips featuring UMC’s advanced packaging will enter trial production in late 2025, with mass production expected in 2026. This milestone not only provides UMC with fresh growth momentum but also directly challenges TSMC’s dominance in the advanced packaging market, positioning UMC as an emerging leader in this rapidly evolving space.