Zeiss says it’s well-positioned to meet rising demand for semiconductor optics despite concerns that the AI boom could create supply chain bottlenecks, particularly for EUV scanners. An executive told Bloomberg that the company has expanded its semiconductor manufacturing headquarters in Oberkochen, is building additional production capacity at another site, and says it can scale further if needed.
The production of ultraprecise EUV mirrors takes months and isn’t readily scalable. As a result, Zeiss has been a bottleneck in the production of EUV scanners before. For example, once EUV had cleared the last hurdle for high-volume semiconductor manufacturing in the previous decade, chipmakers started ordering more than capacity allowed. A few years later, during the pandemic chip boom, demand once again outstripped supply.
Last month, ASML announced a 30 percent EUV capacity increase for 2027 and possibly another 30 percent boost in 2028 while cutting lead times through revised testing protocols.
