Recently, the PCB (Printed Circuit Board) industry has been bustling with activity. Just recently, the PCB New Technology and Industry Innovation Forum held in Shenzhen sent out strong signals: driven by the AI wave, the Chinese PCB market is making significant strides towards a phase of technological dominance. Meanwhile, many PCB companies are expanding overseas, such as Aohong Electronics and Benchuan Intelligent increasing investments in their factories in Thailand, Mingxing Electronics expanding its factory in Hanoi, Vietnam, and Jianding increasing investments in its factory in Vietnam. The opening of new factories by Dingtai Gaoke Technology Co., Ltd. (Thailand) and Yamazaki Circuit Board (Thailand) Co., Ltd. marks a new competition in the global PCB market and indicates a new direction for industry development.
Currently, the fields of PCB and CPO (Co-Packaged Optics) are closely linked, creating waves under the AI trend. As the mother of electronic products, PCB serves as the indispensable “skeleton” and “nervous system” for CPO modules, supporting CPO in achieving high density, high bandwidth, and low power consumption; conversely, advancements in CPO technology feed back into PCB, increasing the demand for its performance and yield. Against this backdrop, six authentic companies that embody both PCB and CPO concepts are attracting significant market attention.
1. Huadian Co., Ltd.
Huadian Co., Ltd. holds an important position in the global PCB market, with a market share exceeding 35%. Its advanced HDI technology serves as a strong technical moat. From operational data, its 800G switch PCB revenue is expected to grow by 90% year-on-year in 2024, showcasing impressive results. Moreover, Huadian has successfully overcome the yield bottleneck for CPO supporting substrates, laying a solid foundation for further market expansion and solidifying its position as a supplier of high-end printed circuit boards in emerging computing scenarios such as high-speed computing servers and artificial intelligence. As a crucial part of the NVIDIA supply chain, with the expansion of NVIDIA’s business and the growing demand for related equipment, Huadian is expected to leverage its technical strength and product advantages to secure more orders and achieve steady growth in performance.
2. Founder Technology
Founder Technology ranks among the top 5 in the PCB industry and has completed a full-stack layout in the CPO optical module field, making it a formidable player. Its unique advantage lies in supplying PCBs for both NVIDIA’s CPO switches and Mellanox accelerator cards, making it an important participant in the NVIDIA supply chain. Additionally, Founder Technology’s 1.6T optical module has achieved mass production, leading the industry. In the current context of rising demand for high-speed optical modules in data centers, Founder Technology is expected to benefit significantly from its dual layout in CPO and PCB, continuously increasing its market share and standing out in a competitive market.
3. NewEase
NewEase stands out in the optical module field with its low-power technology, boasting a 15% lower power consumption compared to its peers, giving its products a significant advantage in energy consumption and aligning with the current trend of green energy efficiency. Its 1.6T products have been certified by Google, proving their high performance and reliability; the CPO wafer packaging yield has reached 98%, showcasing the company’s superb production process. With the explosive growth of data traffic, the demand for high-speed, low-power optical modules is surging, and NewEase is expected to leverage its technological advantages to capture more market share in the CPO market, while its PCB-related business may also experience synergistic growth alongside its optical module business.
4. Bochuang Technology
Bochuang Technology ranks among the top three in domestic silicon optical module mass production capabilities, with strong technical strength. Its 800G silicon optical module has completed validation by NVIDIA, successfully entering the NVIDIA supply chain, which is of great significance for the company’s development. As a key component of CPO technology, silicon optical modules have broad market prospects. Bochuang Technology, relying on its technical accumulation and mass production capabilities in the silicon optical module field, is expected to carve out a share in the CPO market. At the same time, its technology and experience in PCB manufacturing can provide strong support for the production of silicon optical modules, promoting the synergistic development of the company’s overall business and enhancing market competitiveness.
5. Shengyi Electronics
Shengyi Electronics excels in AI server PCB yield, ranking first in the industry with a yield of over 95%. As a supplier of PCBs for Inspur’s AI training machines, Shengyi Electronics has accumulated rich experience and high-quality customer resources in the AI server field. Moreover, its CPO carrier board has passed Broadcom testing, further proving the reliability and technical strength of the company’s products. With the widespread application of AI technology, the demand for AI servers continues to grow, and Shengyi Electronics is expected to consolidate its position in the server PCB market with its high-yield AI server PCB products; at the same time, leveraging breakthroughs in CPO carrier board technology, it aims to explore CPO-related markets and achieve diversified growth.
6. LianTe Technology
LianTe Technology has achieved outstanding results in the CPO field with its self-developed optoelectronic hybrid integration technology, with its CPO high-speed connection solution compatible with Microsoft Azure, achieving a single module transmission rate exceeding 1.6T, providing strong support for high-speed data transmission. This technological achievement not only enhances the company’s competitiveness in the CPO market but also lays a foundation for its integrated development in PCB and CPO. As data centers increasingly demand high-speed connections, LianTe Technology is expected to capture a larger share in the CPO high-speed connection market through continuous product and technology optimization, while also driving the development of PCB-related businesses, achieving overall performance growth for the company.
The above six companies have shown outstanding performance in both PCB and CPO fields. In the current thriving environment of the AI industry, they are expected to seize new development opportunities through the integration trend of these two technologies. However, the stock market is volatile, and investment decisions should be made cautiously. Investors must conduct in-depth research on the company’s fundamentals and industry dynamics, combined with their own risk tolerance, to make informed investment choices.