Sep 22, 2026 iPhone 18 Pro Teardown Highlights Mechanical Camera Aperture and a Major Thermal Redesign iFixit's teardown of Apple’s iPhone 18 Pro models reveals a variable-aperture camera, improved cooling, and easier battery replacement access. However, fragile display components and complex camera repairs limit serviceability, earning the phones a provisional 7/10 repairability score. TechSpot

Sponsor Automation in Transition The world of automation is changing. What does this mean for customers? And what impact is the transformation having on providers? Find out more from a panel of experts. SCHUNK

Singapore: Turning Quantum Research into Business Opportunity Singapore is accelerating quantum commercialization with government funding, research infrastructure, semiconductor capabilities and talent programs. Its National Quantum Strategy advances computing, fabrication, sensing and communications. EE Times

Unlocking Academic-Industry Synergy: A Collaborative Model for Hands-On Electronics Manufacturing Education KYZEN Corporation and the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) have established an academic-industry collaboration to integrate real-world electronics manufacturing challenges directly into engineering education. Technical Paper

OpenAI proposes development of global AI standards to guide alignment, RSI OpenAI proposed international frontier AI safety standards, calling for alignment research, cautious recursive self-improvement and independent evaluations. It warned autonomous RSI could erode human control and urged developer cooperation. CNBC

Sponsor Reflow Oven and Wave Soldering Machine Maintenance Cleaning Maintenance cleaning is imperative. Investment in a cleaning schedule and chemistry creates reliable processes to extend equipment life. KYZEN

AI Power Demands Push GaN into Data Center Design AI's rapid power demands are pushing data centers beyond silicon's limits. GaN offers higher switching frequencies, greater power density and improved efficiency, supporting 800-V architectures and thousands of amperes as AI GPUs approach 5-kW power consumption. EE Times

Recommended Board Spacing During Reflow When running boards through a re-flow oven, should there be a gap between boards, or can they run end-to-end? The Assembly Brothers, Jim Hall and Phil Zarrow, discuss this question. Board Talk

Technical Papers ■ Oxide Reduction for Reliable Electronics Manufacturing ■ UHDI Fabrication for IC Substrates: SAP and mSAP Processes ■ Flux-Free, Reliable, Efficient: Soldering with Formic Acid ■ Redesigning Material Logistics for High-Mix EMS Production ■ Unlocking Academic-Industry Synergy: A Collaborative Model for Hands-On Electronics Manufacturing Education ■ Viscosity Does Not Equal Rheology: What Solder Paste Measurements Really Tell You ■ Salvaging Electronic Components: A Reliable Method for Reducing Electronic Waste and Ensuring Economic Reuse ■ Digital Warehouse Automation in High-Mix PCB Assembly MORE TECHNICAL PAPERS

Sponsor Corrosion, UV Protection for Power Transmission Moisture, corrosive gas, oxidation & UV blocking prop-erties. FLUOROSEAL® conformal coating for electrical contacts & ceramic insulator protection. AI Technology, Inc.

Taiwan can help set standards in AI race AI's rapid progress forces the US to balance safety against competition with China. As leading executives urge caution, Taiwan faces growing geopolitical pressure and should help shape international rules for AI safety, computing governance, and semiconductor traceability. Taipei Times

US and China consider making AI channel US and Chinese officials explored an AI dialogue and notification mechanism for national-security incidents, seeking limited cooperation despite rising tech tensions. Talks also covered trade, critical minerals, farm purchases and a Trump-Xi summit. Taipei Times

Soft Intelligence Epidermal Communication Platform A Path to A Wearable Future Wearable electronics will need to be stretchable to a considerable degree which in turn will require an adjusted production strategy for the commercial manufacturing of the products. Technical Paper

Sponsor AIT ORMET® TLPS for Proven Reliability AIT ORMET® TLPS is proven for outstanding reliability for High and Ultra High-Density Interconnection and high temperature build-up Layer Interconnection beyond 175°C. Ormet® TLPS

Microsoft to double data centers in Taiwan Microsoft plans to double its Taiwan data centers from two to four, mainly in the north, to address persistent capacity shortages. The company also expands Azure services and develops custom ASICs to support growing AI inference workloads and reduce computing costs. Taipei Times

The Invention of Facial Recognition Technology Traces Back to the 1960s Woodrow Wilson Bledsoe pioneered computer-based facial recognition in the 1960s by measuring facial features and matching them with databases. Later researchers, including Takeo Kanade, advanced the technology, laying foundations for today's systems. BGR

Corrosion and Contaminant Diffusion Multi-Physics Model Models for copper interconnect degradation are needed for life prediction modeling to ensure 10-year, 100,000 mile reliability for automotive applications. Technical Paper

Sponsor actnano Materials with Nordson Equipment actnano's PFAS-free, cure-free coatings save energy and boost safety. And they are compatible with Nordson conformal coating systems. Upgrade your system today. Learn more! Nordson Electronic Solutions

This Digital Radio Gets Messages to the World's Remotest Locations Rhizomatica's HERMES boosts shortwave communications with faster digital data rates and encryption over HF frequencies. The open-source system helps remote communities in Bangladesh, Brazil and Ecuador connect globally with minimal infrastructure. IEEE Spectrum

Scaling Physical AI Deployment Beyond the Demo Vision-Language-Action models enable robots to understand environments, follow natural-language commands and adapt dynamically. Deployment still requires optimized inference, real-time control, heterogeneous computing and scalable software across diverse robotic platforms. EE Times

Sponsor SMTA Mexico – vAI ProVision vAI ProVision: Smarter Inspection Programming Discover vAI ProVision by Viscom at SMTA Mexico, Booth: 343. Using proven inspection strategy and AI, it creates optimized inspection programs faster, reducing workload and enhancing reliability. Viscom SE

Design Once, Reuse Forever: The Reconfigurable Analog Front End AnalogPAK combines programmable analog and digital functions to let engineers reuse and scale sensor designs without hardware changes. Gain, filtering, compensation and thresholds support multiple sensors while reducing components, cost and development time. EE Times

Challenges on ENEPIG Finished PCBs Through extensive investigation, using 8D and Kepner-Tregoe problem solving methods, solutions were discovered in the majority of cases. Technical Paper

US and China could start warning each other about dangerous AI incidents under new proposal The US and China plan an AI risk notification system to flag incidents with national security implications. The proposal follows an AI-generated intelligence error that nearly triggered a US military confrontation with a Chinese vessel. TechSpot

Gartner Predicts 60% of Organizations That Ignore Data Governance Culture Challenges Will Fail to Govern AI Successfully by 2027 Gartner warns that by 2027, 60% of organizations neglecting data governance culture may fail to govern AI successfully. Cultural resistance, weak stakeholder engagement and low data maturity increasingly undermine governance, making people and accountability as crucial as technology. Gartner

Sponsor Discover the power of vAI ProVision from Viscom Create and optimize 3D AOI and AXI programs in minutes. vAI ProVision boosts inspection depth, quality, and speed. Viscom develops & produces premium inspection systems. Viscom

Having the Latest AI Model Can Actually Be a Bad Business Decision. Here’s How to Know When an Upgrade Is Worth It. Companies should weigh AI model gains against testing, deployment, monitoring and engineering costs. Slightly higher accuracy may not improve business outcomes, making production readiness dependent on real-world performance, not offline benchmarks alone. Entrepreneur