Overview
- The shortage centers on high-end glass cloth fiber used deep inside chip substrates and PCBs, where the material cannot be replaced after assembly and consistent quality is paramount.
- Japan’s Nitto Boseki (Nittobo) supplies most of the advanced material, creating a bottleneck now pressured by AI buyers such as Nvidia, Google, Amazon, AMD, and Qualcomm.
- Apple has dispatched staff to Japan, stationed personnel at Mitsubishi Gas Chemical, and sought assistance from Japanese government officials to secure future allocations.
- The company is attempting to qualify alternative sources, including China’s Grace Fabric Technology with quality oversight from Mitsubishi Gas Chemical, but newcomers are struggling to meet specifications at volume.
- Using lower-grade glass cloth has been discussed as a stopgap, yet the validation required means it would not meaningfully help 2026 production.