ASML is betting bigger EUV mirrors and stacked transistors will keep chips advancing
Crystal ball: ASML is the only company that makes the EUV lithography machines needed to produce the world's most advanced chips. Its CEO, Christophe Fouquet, says the AI boom will play out over 10 to 15 years and that we're only seeing the tip of the iceberg. Meeting that demand will depend on better optics, vertical chip designs and a sprawling supplier network that can't be scaled up quickly. That makes ASML's roadmap a useful gauge of how far AI hardware can go, and how fast.
Why it matters: After USA-based manufacturers, Dutch and Japanese companies are now preparing a harsher ban on technology exports to China. The Asian country won't have access to any of the machinery needed to make high-performance microchips.