Semiconductor & AI Supply Chain: Malaysia’s IMD competitiveness jump is being linked to the AI and semiconductor boom, with analysts pointing to strength across electrical/electronics supply, advanced packaging, and data-center investment. Integrated Photonics Manufacturing: PhotonPath and Xiver are teaming up to move Oxyn production onto Xiver’s 200mm wafer infrastructure, aiming for more capacity and repeatable quality for telecom/datacom photonic devices. Laser Manufacturing Scale-Up: Lithuanian femtosecond laser startup LITILIT is expanding in Vilnius with a planned automated, modular laser production setup targeting up to 3,000 lasers annually. E-waste & Critical Materials: Karo Sambhav raised Rs 56 crore in a pre-Series A led by Rainmatter to scale e-waste recycling and critical material recovery in India. Battery & EV Hardware: Rimac has started producing high-voltage battery systems for the BMW i7 in Croatia, feeding BMW’s assembly in Germany. Consumer Electronics Pricing Pressure: Apple confirmed it will raise prices due to an “unsustainable” memory chip shortage, with industry estimates tying memory costs to a large share of device bills. Aviation Safety & Batteries: A smartphone fire aboard a British Airways flight at Tokyo Haneda highlights ongoing lithium-ion battery fire concerns in air travel. Court & Digital Platforms: India’s Delhi High Court upheld the temporary Telegram restriction tied to NEET-UG re-exam malpractice concerns. Market Pulse: India’s Sensex rose for a fifth straight session, helped by easing crude and geopolitics, while broader tech sentiment stayed mixed.