As reported by Nikkei News, the booming global demand for AI chips has triggered a shortage of their crucial base material—high - end fiberglass cloth. This particular fiberglass cloth serves as a fundamental material for the production of AI chip substrates and high - speed printed circuit boards (PCBs). It has a direct bearing on the signal transmission speed and stability of the chips.

At present, tech behemoths like Apple, NVIDIA, Google, Amazon, and Microsoft are locked in a fierce battle to secure this scarce resource. The production process for high - end fiberglass cloth is extremely demanding. Japan's Nitto Boseki stands as the dominant global supplier, commanding over 90% of the global market share.

Given its limited production capacity, Nitto Boseki's new production capacity is not anticipated to go into operation until the second half of 2027. This makes it highly challenging to ease the supply shortage in the near future. To tackle this shortage, tech giants are proactively exploring alternative suppliers. They are also intensifying their cooperation with Chinese manufacturers in an effort to break through the supply bottleneck.