Memory shortage slows Flexium transformation with new product launches to lift profits in 2H26

The memory shortage is spilling from consumer electronics into AI hardware supply chains, exposing a critical gap between high-end substrates and advanced packaging that Flexium’s FPCB capacity constraints reveal. Lagging DRAM/NAND expansions, combined with CoWoS packaging’s voracious demand for high-density interconnects, are forcing non-tier-one clients to delay smart glasses and AI server rollouts—not merely a logistics issue, but a test of technical co-optimization. U.S. clients’ pricing power stems from geopolitical compliance advantages: their onshoring strategies sidestep export controls, while Korean and Taiwanese suppliers absorb rising compliance costs. Japanese rivals like Nippon Mektron may seize mid-tier AIoT orders, triggering price wars. Over the next 18 months, second-tier suppliers lacking vertical integration will be purged from the AI hardware ecosystem. The value of flexible circuits will pivot from 'bendability' to 'integrability'—only those embedded in Chiplet architectures will survive.