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AI Faces Glass Fiber Shortage… Industry Struggles as Japan Monopolizes Key Material

• The industry is on high alert due to a shortage of low thermal expansion glass fiber used in AI semiconductor substrates.

• Demand is surging, but the number of suppliers worldwide is extremely limited. Capacity expansion also takes a long time, so the shortage of glass fiber is hitting the advanced industries hard.

• Low thermal expansion glass fiber has effectively become “name your price.” Manufacturers are allocating supply by customer and raising prices.

• In the case of Japan’s Nittobo, the price of its low thermal expansion glass fiber has already risen by around 20% since August, with the possibility of further hikes being raised.

• With supply so scarce, securing volumes has become urgent even if prices rise. Not only substrate-related companies but also semiconductor firms, the ultimate customers, are sending executives abroad—essentially waging a “glass fiber procurement war.”

• An industry insider explained: “Nittobo’s product has effectively become the industry standard, but supply is limited and constrained. Companies are lining up to receive allocations, and even top executives are now directly stepping in.”

• Glass fiber is one of the materials used in CCL (copper-clad laminate), the main substrate material. It resembles bundles of fine glass threads and is used to enhance substrate heat resistance.

• For high-performance AI semiconductors, glass fiber is indispensable, as they generate far more heat than conventional semiconductors and require high-temperature advanced packaging processes. This makes glass fiber both necessary and in larger volumes.

• With the explosive growth of the AI market and skyrocketing demand for high-performance chips, bottlenecks have emerged in the glass fiber supply chain, creating cracks in supply-demand balance.

• Only a handful of companies manufacture low thermal expansion glass fiber, including Japan’s Nittobo and Taiwan Glass, but Nittobo dominates the market with over 80% global share.

• Nittobo’s flagship glass fiber, “T-Glass,” first gained attention in 2023 in AI server switch motherboards and then saw demand soar in AI semiconductor substrates the following year.

• In Korea, Doosan Electronics and LG Chem use T-Glass to produce CCL, which they then supply to substrate manufacturers.

• The shortage of low thermal expansion glass fiber is not expected to ease easily and may continue through next year, raising concerns about industry-wide impact.

• As a latecomer, Taiwan Glass is attempting to enter the supply chain, but its quality and capacity expansion are reportedly not progressing smoothly. Meanwhile, Nittobo is pushing to expand, but new facilities are only expected to begin operations in 2027.