Edited by NCKU MSE Alumni Association　Image Credit to NCKU News Center.

On November 6, the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at National Cheng Kung University (NCKU) and the NCKU MSE Alumni Association co-hosted the 11th NCKU Materials Industry Forum at the Chung-Hwa Hall in the Sun Yun-Suan Green Building Research Center on the Li-Hsing Campus. Centered on the theme " Advanced Packaging, Testing, and Materials Innovation: Driving the New AI Competition, " the forum gathered top executives and experts from Taiwan’s semiconductor industry, including Dung-Sheng Jiang (Senior Vice President, Siliconware Precision Industries Co., Ltd.), Gauss Chang (President, King Yuan Electronics Co., Ltd.), Mark Wang (Founder and Chairman, WinWay Technology Co., Ltd.), Yu-Feng Ko (Deputy Director, Materials Analysis Technology Inc.), and Tung Chou (Taiwan Regional Commercial Head, Corning Incorp.). Through keynote speeches and panel discussions, the event explored critical advances in packaging, precision inspection, testing technologies, and materials. NCKU President Dr. Meng-Ru Shen, Applied Materials group vice president and Applied Materials Taiwan President Erix Yu, alongside past forum keynote speakers, and honored guests attended to celebrate the deepening collaboration between NCKU and industry.

The 11th NCKU Materials Industry Forum gathered top executives and experts from Taiwan’s semiconductor industry to explore critical advances in packaging, precision inspection, testing technologies, and materials.

Dr. Wayne Yang, President of the NCKU MSE Alumni Association and Forum Chairman, reflected on the founding vision of the forum: to build a long-term bridge between academia and industry, help students grasp future trajectories, and empower talent through shared knowledge and practice to unlock new value. Spotlighting advanced packaging, this year's forum engaged senior leadership and R&D heads from top packaging and testing companies, forging stronger industry-academia synergies to drive Taiwan’s materials and semiconductor ecosystems forward.

NCKU President Meng-Ru Shen delivered opening remarks commending the forum's consistent eleven-year track record in building an exchange bridge between academia and industry. President Shen noted that the Materials Industry Forum has served as the pioneer among all departmental industry forums across NCKU, establishing a successful dialogue model that inspired subsequent specialized forums organized by the Departments of Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, and Engineering Science. These achievements further prompted NCKU to think from an institutional vantage point to build a cross-disciplinary platform, ultimately giving rise to the inaugural "NCKU Forum" focused on talent strategy, which convened cross-sector leaders and alumni to examine Taiwan's talent roadmap. President Shen added that through strong university-industry connections, NCKU aspires to cultivate a mutually beneficial industry-academia ecosystem, maximizing the societal value of university knowledge.

NCKU President Meng-Ru Shen presented certificates of appreciation to the forum speakers

Prof. Wen-Dung Hsu, Chair of the Department of Materials Science and Engineering, noted that the forum aligns annually with NCKU’s anniversary celebrations, uniting prominent domestic and international alumni and industry leaders. It provides not only an industry-academia exchange platform, but also direct avenues for students to keep pace with industry status and cutting-edge trends. Chin-Lai Wang, President of the NCKU Global Alumni Association, extended his congratulations and expectations, remarking that while materials define the boundaries of technology, talent dictates the future of enterprises. NCKU actively advances joint industry-academia research centers and talent programs, deepening supply chain links and equipping Taiwanese enterprises with core technologies and top-tier talent to foster sustainable industrial progress.

The forum presented five specialized keynote addresses covering essential segments of the semiconductor value chain:

NCKU MSE alumnus Dung-Sheng Jiang, Senior Vice President at Siliconware Precision Industries (SPIL), opened with "Advanced Packaging and Future Challenges from an OSAT Perspective," drawing on over two decades of packaging experience to outlining roadmaps and mass-production deployments for 2.5D and fan-out packaging technologies. Gauss Chang, President of King Yuan Electronics (KYEC), followed with "Testing: The Critical Key," leveraging his extensive market and business development to analyze emerging trends and dynamics in semiconductor testing.Mark Wang, Founder and Chairman of WinWay Technology, then delivered an address on "Semiconductor Test Interfaces," detailing product architectures, key materials, and their vital functions throughout wafer fabrication and chip validation.

Shifting the focus toward advanced analytical services, Yu-Feng Ko, Deputy Director of R&D Project Management at Materials Analysis Technology (MA-tek), presented "The Invisible Engine of the AI Era: Outlook on Semiconductor Inspection and Analytical Services," explaining how analytical services support advanced fabrication while meeting surging AI-driven verification demands. Concluding the session, Tung Chou, Commercial Head at Corning Incorporated, delivered a forward-looking talk titled "From Advanced Packaging to AI Infrastructure: The Emerging Role of Glass," offering a forward-looking of glass substrates in next-generation advanced packaging and AI infrastructure.

The venue was packed to capacity with industry professionals, faculty and students.

The event concluded with a high-level panel discussion between Mike Ma, Executive President of Unimicron, and Shang Hou, Deputy GM of MediaTek. Focused on "Aggregating Industry Wisdom and Sparking New Materials Thinking,"  the executives engaged in a dynamic dialogue on advanced packaging evolution, supply chain materials strategies, and next-generation AI chip challenges, offering sharp insights to close the forum.

The conclusion of the 11th NCKU Materials Industry Forum highlights Taiwan’s strategic evolution from isolated technological breakthroughs toward an integrated, co-prosperous industrial ecosystem, demonstrating the fruitful outcome of NCKU’s sustained industry partnerships. Looking ahead, NCKU will continue to serve as a pivotal hub for core R&D and talent development, partnering with industry leaders to advance materials innovation and shape a resilient roadmap for the global semiconductor landscape.

Since 2015, the NCKU Materials Industry Forum has been hosted jointly by the NCKU Department of Materials Science and Engineering and its Alumni Association. Held annually during the November anniversary month (with only one hiatus due to COVID-19), the forum has become a hallmark anniversary tradition for the department, aligning with industrial needs to drive cross-boundary dialogue, practical mentorship, and expanded industry-academia cooperation.