AI Server Demand Triggers 'Material Shortage'! PCB Material Specifications Fully Upgraded, Two Taiwanese Firms Seize High-End Resin Opportunities

As demands for low-loss and heat-resistant performance increase, supply chain business opportunities are extending further upstream to specialty resins. Kokusai Chemical is expanding its high-end electronic resin portfolio, while Shuangjian is advancing from MPPO materials to M8-grade HC materials.

According to TPCA statistics, in the first quarter of 2026, the manufacturing output value of PCBs by Taiwanese companies reached NT$245.6 billion, a year-on-year increase of 19.6%, setting a new record for the same period in history. The second-quarter output is projected to rise further to NT$256.1 billion, a 17.4% year-on-year increase, with the full-year output expected to reach NT$1.0532 trillion, up 15.1% year-on-year.

This growth is primarily driven by sustained demand for AI servers, high-speed networking equipment, and high-end computing, boosting shipments of high-end PCB products such as substrates, high-layer-count boards, and HDI. Meanwhile, CCL material specifications continue to upgrade, and the supply of key materials such as high-end glass fabric and high-end copper foil remains tight, leading to an upgraded PCB product mix and increased material value.

The rapid evolution of AI server platforms means critical PCBs—such as motherboards, UBBs, OAMs, high-speed switch boards, and backplanes—face higher layer counts, faster data rates, and stricter signal integrity requirements. This is driving a shift from standard FR-4 systems to low-loss and ultra-low-loss CCLs, increasing demand for low-Dk, low-Df resin systems, high-end low-dielectric glass fabric, and HVLP copper foil. As signal speeds increase and board layer counts grow, material dielectric properties, copper foil surface roughness, resin flow and fill capability, lamination alignment, drilling precision, impedance control, and electrical testing capabilities must all improve in tandem.

Compared to PCBs for general consumer electronics, AI server PCBs must carry higher-speed, higher-bandwidth, and higher-density high-speed signal channels, leaving minimal tolerance for insertion loss, impedance control, and timing skew. Any poor control over connectors, traces, or material characteristics can increase the risk of signal attenuation, reflection, and data errors, raising the difficulty of design validation and manufacturing yield control.

As data center switches evolve from 800G to 1.6T generations, the density of high-speed channels on GPU and ASIC platform boards continues to increase. The consistency and stability of material Dk and Df, along with copper foil roughness, glass fabric structure, trace design, and impedance continuity, have become key factors affecting high-speed signal integrity. As AI raises the technical threshold for PCBs, the relevant supply chain must now possess high-end material certification, process capability, yield management, technical service, co-development with customers, and global production capacity.

In the past, some mature products in the PCB industry faced long-term competition in scale, cost, and manufacturing efficiency, with manufacturers accumulating profits through equipment utilization, process yield, and operational efficiency. However, as AI server architectures rapidly evolve, technical bottlenecks in the supply chain are gradually shifting outward from GPUs, ASICs, and high-speed switch chips to PCB design, CCLs, and upstream materials.

The higher the signal rate handled by AI servers, the greater the number of board layers and the higher the density of high-speed channels on the board, increasing system demands for material dielectric properties, consistency, and process control. While standard FR-4 materials can meet the needs of many mature electronic products, long-distance, high-speed, and low-loss channels require a shift to mid-low-loss, low-loss, or ultra-low-loss grade materials based on link loss budgets.

With the arrival of the 800G and 1.6T era, demand for high-end materials is outpacing supply. As 800G switches, AI server motherboards, and high-speed backplanes continue to raise transmission speed and signal integrity requirements, CCL demand is evolving from standard materials toward M7/M8 and higher-grade low-loss materials, depending on the loss budget of different platforms, board positions, and high-speed links.

For high-performance computing platforms, in addition to material cost, the risks associated with switching suppliers—such as re-qualification, process adjustments, and mass production risks—are also critical considerations. Once a material passes customer certification and establishes a stable mass production record, the supply relationship typically exhibits high technical stickiness. As a result, competition in the high-end materials market is no longer just about price, but rather hinges on material performance, process compatibility, production stability, and technical service capability.

(Article authorized from 'Sinotrade Investment Weekly Issue 2412')