Taiwan Defense & Drones: Taiwan’s ruling party is pushing a $6.6B special defense bill to scale up domestic drone production, including plans for nearly 1,500 reconnaissance drones, large volumes of short-range munitions, and unmanned surface vessels, with multi-year funding to build industrial capacity. Semiconductors & Supply Chain: TSMC and Amkor have locked in a 10-year deal for advanced packaging and test services, while TSMC’s AI-driven demand story keeps strengthening its financial outlook. Quantum Tech (Taiwan): NTHU researchers report the world’s brightest room-temperature single-photon source with ultrafast, non-blinking emission—an advance aimed at practical quantum communication and photonic chips. Cross-Strait Security: Taiwan’s National Security Bureau has launched a public “Contact Portal for Chinese Citizens” to encourage defections and intelligence sharing. Geopolitics & Tech Controls: China retaliated against U.S. actions by adding 10 U.S. firms to export controls and restricting 46 from government procurement, underscoring the tech-and-defense squeeze around Taiwan. AI & Memory Market: DDR2 prices jumped sharply as AI-driven DRAM shortages push some makers to downgrade to older memory standards. Global Tech/Business: Valve confirmed Steam Machine pricing (from $1,049) amid component shortages, while Netflix is launching a new “Hot Ones” spinoff. Regional Digital Government: The Philippines is expanding Google Cloud-backed AI agents across e-government services as adoption grows and cyber threats rise.