Semiconductor & Technology Specialist, Ingenuity

William Keating

Semiconductor & Technology Specialist

Ingenuity

Our focus is exclusively on in-depth research & consulting in the broader semiconductor industry. We focus on the key players, namely Intel, Micron, Qualcomm, Apple, Samsung, NVIDIA, AMD, TSMC & Global Foundries - as well as some of the lesser known, but nonetheless critical, companies such as ASML (for EUV), Mellanox, Cavium, Xilinx etc. We specialise in their products, roadmaps, process technologies, competitive advantages & threats etc. We also help our clients understand the implications of new and emerging technologies, e.g. 3D X-Point, 3D NAND, Carbon Nanotubes, Autonomous Driving, Graphene, Silicon Photonics, Wafer-Level Optics, Artificial Intelligence, FPGA, GPU, ASIC etc. 

Semiconductor Analysis & Research

Thematic (Sector/Industry)

Autonomous Driving represents the perfect fusion of our love affair with automobiles and our fascination with artificial intelligence. It has been part of our collective imagination for decades, first epitomized at the 1939 New York World Fair Futurama exhibit which posited an automated highway system (AHS), sponsored by General Motors. Research on AHS conducted at The Ohio State University led to the development of the world's first partially autonomous vehicle in 1962. Fast forward half a century and the goal of achieving autonomous driving is firmly fixed in the glare of our automobile headlights. Leading automakers, as well as technology companies, are promising autonomous or at least highly autonomous automobiles within the next three years. At the forefront, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/11369" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:11369:1">Alphabet Inc Cl C (GOOG US)</a> represented by its automotive spin-off Waymo, is in the process of launching the world's first driverless taxi service in Phoenix, Arizona. <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/18811" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:18811:1">General Motors Co (GM US)</a>, arguably the closest to Waymo in technology terms, has announced similar plans to launch an autonomous ride-sharing service in 2019.Not all is rosy in the autonomous driving garden, however. The sector has been plagued by high-profile defections of key staff leaving to either create their own startups or join competitors. These moves have led to equally high-profile and in some cases, embarrassing, law-suits. Other companies rush to hire talented artificial intelligence engineers has decimated the research ranks of leading universities.The safety and reliability of autonomous driving technology on our streets today has also been thrown into doubt in recent times. Just two days ago, on March 18'th, the first fatal accident involving an autonomous vehicle occurred in Phoenix Arizona, details <a href="https://electrek.co/2018/03/19/uber-self-driving-prototyp-fatal-crash-police/" target="_blank">here</a>. That vehicle was a Volvo XC90 and was part of <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/430" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:430:1">Uber Technologies Inc</a> self-driving test fleet in the city. According to initial reports, the vehicle was operating in autonomous mode and had a safety driver on board. While we need to await the outcome of this particular investigation, previous incidents involving other autonomous vehicles highlight some astonishing shortcomings of the technology being used on our streets today. Indeed, there are now serious questions about the viability of so-called Level 3 autonomous driving in so far as they rely on emergency intervention by a driver highly likely to have been distracted by something more exciting than monitoring an automobile driving by itself. Autonomous driving is a subject far too broad to be covered in a single Insight. Consider this a primer where we begin by examining the origins of autonomous driving, tracing its roots back to 1960s which, by no coincidence, was also the starting point for much of the research on modern-day artificial intelligence. We look at the specific factors which combined to propel autonomous driving from the AI laboratories of prestigious universities to the drawing boards of multinationals around the globe. We review the framework for the different levels of autonomous driving and highlight the fact that most auto OEM's choose to largely ignore them. We then examine in detail the aforementioned issues with Level 3 autonomous driving and reveal that the technology used in the Volvo XC90, the vehicle involved in the recent fatal accident in Phoenix, specifically warns in its user manual that it should not be used for city driving and that it cannot detect pedestrians, cyclists etc. Recognizing the seminal role that <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/11369" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:11369:1">Alphabet Inc Cl C (GOOG US)</a> has played in advancing the technology, we provide an in-depth review of their self-driving initiative from its inception as a secretive Google X project to its current day incarnation as Waymo. By way of contrast, we examine the autonomous driving ambitions of one of the world's leading auto OEMs, General Motors, and provide a detailed review of their progress to date. Finally, we address the question on everybody's mind when it comes to autonomous driving - are we there yet?

Autonomous Driving represents the perfect fusion of our love affair with automobiles and our fascination with artificial intelligence. It has been part of our collective imagination for decades, first epitomized at the 1939 New York World Fair Futurama exhibit which posited an automated highway system (AHS), sponsored by General Motors. Research on AHS conducted at The Ohio State University led to the development of the world's first partially autonomous vehicle in 1962. Fast forward half a century and the goal of achieving autonomous driving is firmly fixed in the glare of our automobile headlights. Leading automakers, as well as technology companies, are promising autonomous or at least highly autonomous automobiles within the next three years. At the forefront, Alphabet Inc Cl C (GOOG US) represented by its automotive spin-off Waymo, is in the process of launching the world's first driverless taxi service in Phoenix, Arizona. General Motors Co (GM US), arguably the closest to Waymo in technology terms, has announced similar plans to launch an autonomous ride-sharing service in 2019.Not all is rosy in the autonomous driving garden, however. The sector has been plagued by high-profile defections of key staff leaving to either create their own startups or join competitors. These moves have led to equally high-profile and in some cases, embarrassing, law-suits. Other companies rush to hire talented artificial intelligence engineers has decimated the research ranks of leading universities.The safety and reliability of autonomous driving technology on our streets today has also been thrown into doubt in recent times. Just two days ago, on March 18'th, the first fatal accident involving an autonomous vehicle occurred in Phoenix Arizona, details here. That vehicle was a Volvo XC90 and was part of Uber Technologies Inc self-driving test fleet in the city. According to initial reports, the vehicle was operating in autonomous mode and had a safety driver on board. While we need to await the outcome of this particular investigation, previous incidents involving other autonomous vehicles highlight some astonishing shortcomings of the technology being used on our streets today. Indeed, there are now serious questions about the viability of so-called Level 3 autonomous driving in so far as they rely on emergency intervention by a driver highly likely to have been distracted by something more exciting than monitoring an automobile driving by itself. Autonomous driving is a subject far too broad to be covered in a single Insight. Consider this a primer where we begin by examining the origins of autonomous driving, tracing its roots back to 1960s which, by no coincidence, was also the starting point for much of the research on modern-day artificial intelligence. We look at the specific factors which combined to propel autonomous driving from the AI laboratories of prestigious universities to the drawing boards of multinationals around the globe. We review the framework for the different levels of autonomous driving and highlight the fact that most auto OEM's choose to largely ignore them. We then examine in detail the aforementioned issues with Level 3 autonomous driving and reveal that the technology used in the Volvo XC90, the vehicle involved in the recent fatal accident in Phoenix, specifically warns in its user manual that it should not be used for city driving and that it cannot detect pedestrians, cyclists etc. Recognizing the seminal role that Alphabet Inc Cl C (GOOG US) has played in advancing the technology, we provide an in-depth review of their self-driving initiative from its inception as a secretive Google X project to its current day incarnation as Waymo. By way of contrast, we examine the autonomous driving ambitions of one of the world's leading auto OEMs, General Motors, and provide a detailed review of their progress to date. Finally, we address the question on everybody's mind when it comes to autonomous driving - are we there yet?

Semiconductors, Memory and SSDs Specialist, Objective Analysis

Jim Handy

Semiconductors, Memory and SSDs Specialist

Objective Analysis

Objective Analysis offers third-party independent market research and data for the semiconductor industry and investors in the semiconductor industry.

Semiconductors, Memory and SSDs

Equity Bottom-Up

<ul>
<li>Micron Technology reported very positive revenues this quarter and a return to profitability</li>
<li>A large part of this stems from the impact that HBM demand is constraining production of standard DDR5 DRAM, driving it into a shortage</li>
<li>This is good news for Micron and its DRAM competitors Samsung and SK hynix</li>
</ul>


Micron Technology reported very positive revenues this quarter and a return to profitability
A large part of this stems from the impact that HBM demand is constraining production of standard DDR5 DRAM, driving it into a shortage
This is good news for Micron and its DRAM competitors Samsung and SK hynix


Micron Earnings: HBM Driving Price Increases in Other Sectors

APAC IPOs & Placements, Aequitas Research

Ethan Aw

APAC IPOs & Placements

IPOs and Placements coverage across Asia Pacific

Aequitas Research

We cover all listing across the Asia Pacific along with follow-up placements. As of Dec 2020, our team had covered 539 IPOs with a hit rate of 73.5% and 685 placements with a hit rate of 66.8%.

We combine fundamental bottom-up views with our proprietary quantitative framework to provide a holistic coverage across new listings and placements. Our coverage includes pre-IPO notes before the deal is launched, follow-up analysis once the deal is live and post-listing trading analysis as well.

Equity Capital Markets

<ul>
<li>
<a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/reddit-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:40917:1" rel="noopener">Reddit (RDDT US)</a> is looking to raise up to US$750m in its US IPO.</li>
<li>Reddit is an online social media platform where users are able to join communities, engage in conversations, research, exchange goods and services as well as create new communities.</li>
<li>In our previous note, we talked about the company’s historical performance. In this note, we share our quick thoughts on valuation.</li>
</ul>



Reddit (RDDT US) is looking to raise up to US$750m in its US IPO.
Reddit is an online social media platform where users are able to join communities, engage in conversations, research, exchange goods and services as well as create new communities.
In our previous note, we talked about the company’s historical performance. In this note, we share our quick thoughts on valuation.


<ul>
<li>The EU has just launched the World's first AI Act</li>
<li>OpenAI claims the NYT tried to hack ChatGPT in order to prove they used their archive material during  one of its training phases. </li>
<li>Google's licensing of Reddit's content in advance of the latter's impending IPO is a win-win for both, and likely how content creators can expect to be rewarded in the future</li>
</ul>


The EU has just launched the World's first AI Act
OpenAI claims the NYT tried to hack ChatGPT in order to prove they used their archive material during  one of its training phases. 
Google's licensing of Reddit's content in advance of the latter's impending IPO is a win-win for both, and likely how content creators can expect to be rewarded in the future


Generative AI. Innovation Turns To Litigation, Licensing & Regulation

Korea/Asia, Events, IPOs, Douglas Research Advisory

Douglas Kim

Korea/Asia, Events, IPOs

<ul>
<li>In this insight, we discuss LG Electronics (066570 KS) 's investment in Bear Robotics (US) and LG Electronics' aggressive ambitions to become a major player in the global robotics industry. </li>
<li>LG Electronics announced that it invested a $60 million Series C funding round in Bear Robotics, a Silicon Valley based company that provides service robotics and artificial intelligence solutions.</li>
<li>One of the key goals of LG Electronics is to expand into the global robotics software market, which is expected to grow to about 100 trillion won in eight years.</li>
</ul>


In this insight, we discuss LG Electronics (066570 KS) 's investment in Bear Robotics (US) and LG Electronics' aggressive ambitions to become a major player in the global robotics industry. 
LG Electronics announced that it invested a $60 million Series C funding round in Bear Robotics, a Silicon Valley based company that provides service robotics and artificial intelligence solutions.
One of the key goals of LG Electronics is to expand into the global robotics software market, which is expected to grow to about 100 trillion won in eight years.


LG Electronics: Investment In Bear Robotics and Aggressive Plans to Expand in Global Robotics

United States

Alphabet, Inc. operates as a holding company. The Company, through its subsidiaries, provides web-based search, advertisements, maps, software applications, mobile operating systems, consumer content, enterprise solutions, commerce, and hardware products.

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Alphabet (GOOG US)

Autonomous Driving- Are We There Yet?

I find it fascinating to read this again, almost six years to the day since I published it. I intend to publish an update on this topic in the...

William Keating

Micron Earnings: HBM Driving Price Increases in Other Sectors

Micron Technology sees positive revenues and profitability due to HBM demand creating a DDR5 DRAM shortage, benefiting Micron, Samsung, and SK hynix.

Jim Handy

Reddit IPO - Quick Thoughts on Valuation

Reddit (RDDT US) is looking to raise up to US$750m in its US IPO. In our previous note, we talked about the company’s historical performance. In...

Ethan Aw

Generative AI. Innovation Turns To Litigation, Licensing & Regulation

EU has launched the World's first AI Act. OpenAI claims the NYT hacked ChatGPT in order to prove they used their archive material during its...

William Keating

LG Electronics: Investment In Bear Robotics and Aggressive Plans to Expand in Global Robotics

In this insight, we discuss LG Electronics (066570 KS) 's investment in Bear Robotics (US) and LG Electronics' aggressive ambitions to become a...

Douglas Kim

Price Gauge

52-week Range

Market Cap (USDm)

P/E

Dividend (Yield)

Autonomous Driving- Are We There Yet?

I find it fascinating to read this again, almost six years to the day since I published it. I intend to publish an update on this topic in the...

William Keating

Micron Earnings: HBM Driving Price Increases in Other Sectors

​Micron Technology sees positive revenues and profitability due to HBM demand creating a DDR5 DRAM shortage, benefiting Micron, Samsung, and SK hynix.

Jim Handy

Reddit IPO - Quick Thoughts on Valuation

Reddit (RDDT US) is looking to raise up to US$750m in its US IPO. In our previous note, we talked about the company’s historical performance. In...

Ethan Aw

Generative AI. Innovation Turns To Litigation, Licensing & Regulation

EU has launched the World's first AI Act. OpenAI claims the NYT hacked ChatGPT in order to prove they used their archive material during its...

William Keating

LG Electronics: Investment In Bear Robotics and Aggressive Plans to Expand in Global Robotics

In this insight, we discuss LG Electronics (066570 KS) 's investment in Bear Robotics (US) and LG Electronics' aggressive ambitions to become a...

Douglas Kim

Micron Technology sees positive revenues and profitability due to HBM demand creating a DDR5 DRAM shortage, benefiting Micron, Samsung, and SK hynix.