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September 16th, 2026
News and Resources for PCB Design, Fab and Assembly Professionals Subscribe •  Advertise •  PCD&F •  Circuits Assembly •  Tell A Friend
THE LEAD

Calls to slow AI development are growing louder, but putting the brakes on a global technology race is another matter. A designer put AI-driven PCB design to the test, taking a board from prompt to working hardware without manual design edits.

TECH NEWS

A designer used Claude Fable 5 to create and manufacture a working PCB without manual design edits or verification, spending about $450 in API credits and $150 for five assembled boards.

AI industry leaders are raising questions about slowing development of increasingly powerful models, but competition, enforcement and international coordination could make any broad pause difficult to implement.

AI tools are gaining traction in recycling by improving contamination detection, material sorting and recovery while augmenting workers rather than replacing them.

Samsung Electro-Mechanics and Qualcomm develop organic bridge for 2.1D packaging.

China's Empyrean says agentic AI cut chip circuit design time by 75 percent.

Madan Jagernauth discusses the HDP User Group’s latest R&D activities, challenges posed by extreme packaging densities and future plans, along with a preview of its PCB West 2026 sessions, in the latest episode of PCB Chat.

Stackpole releases RNAN thin film resistors.

ECIA has opened its 20-plus-course PACE electronic components training curriculum to nonmembers.

Binder releases M12-A midmount PCB connectors.

Weisun has added a dedicated 310 x 310mm chamber configuration to its AQWOL-5S smart clean room and inert gas oven.

PCEA Training said only a handful of seats remain for its CPCD training and certification program, taking place Sept. 28-Oct. 2 at PCB West 2026.

An upcoming PCEA webinar will look at component availability, lifecycle risk, lead times and electronics supply chain challenges.

PCEA announced 11 free technical sessions and a keynote for PCB West 2026, covering topics including AI, PCB design, signal integrity, flex, UHDI, fabrication and assembly on Sept. 30 in Santa Clara, CA.

PCB West 2026 will feature a panel examining AI, interposers, high-speed and high-current design, and optical interconnects shaping PCB design through the end of the decade.

PCEA announced two fall webinars covering the role of the PCB designer and signal routing for controlling energy, signal integrity and EMI in digital PCBs.

PCB West 2026 will feature 11 presentations on electronics assembly processes, including a half-day solder paste qualification workshop and sessions covering SMT printing, stencil design, reflow soldering and more.

PCEA will host a 3.5-hour webinar on Nov. 4 led by Susy Webb covering signal routing techniques to improve signal integrity and EMI performance.

CIRCUITS ASSEMBLY is accepting entries for the 20th annual New Product Introduction Awards, with submissions for electronics assembly products due Dec. 14.

Looking for networking opportunities? Join the PCEA Discord server, bringing together engineers and designers from around the world on a private channel for discussing technical questions and career opportunities.

CAVEAT LECTOR
It’s Show Time
A lot of us travel for work; it’s part of the job. It recently dawned on me that I’ve spent over a year of my life in California. (I’m surprised I don’t have a surfer accent and purple hair by now.) California has its share of issues, natural and manmade, but the Golden State remains the high-tech capital of the US.

ANDY SHAUGHNESSY

Andy Shaughnessy





















BUSINESS NEWS

A potentially strong El Niño could disrupt mining of copper and other critical materials used in electronics, creating supply and cost pressures that could ripple into semiconductor production and AI infrastructure.

Flex unveiled Axiom Solutions International as the name of its planned independent cloud and power infrastructure company.

Ondas acquired Gate Technologies and Bron Technologies for $205M.

China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology released its development blueprint for the electronic information manufacturing industry under the 15th Five-Year Plan.)

Foxconn subsidiary acquires use rights to three Shenzhen factory buildings.

Miltronik invests in Yamaha YRi-V 3D AOI.

Arch Systems secured $30M from Vistara Growth to accelerate its agentic AI platform.

Celestica named Mandeep Chawla group president, global markets, and Todd Ankenmann will succeed him as chief financial officer.

Luminovo has named Buymanager founder Loïc Biarez to its ambassador network.

ViTrox appointed Rafael Matute service manager for Mexico.

Intuitive Machines named Tara Taylor PWB designer.

BOARD TALK
How to Safeguard PCB Quality in a Seller’s Market
PCB buyers can safeguard quality by maintaining rigorous factory qualification, engineering review and material controls despite growing market pressures.

JEFFREY BEAUCHAMP

Jeffrey Beauchamp






















TECHNICAL ARTICLES

PCB Designers Earn More, Do More: The 2026 Compensation Picture
PCD&F/CIRCUITS ASSEMBLY


Thermo-Hydraulic Performance of Interconnected Mini-Channels with Periodic Boundary Layer Interruption
Nature Communications


Electrochemical Depopulation of Waste Printed Circuit Boards (WPCBs) with Simultaneous Recovery of Tin

Nature Communications


EVENTS

Sept. 28-Oct. 2: Certified Printed Circuit Design TrainingSanta Clara, CA
Sept. 29: PCEA Annual MeetingSanta Clara (CA) Convention Center
Sept. 29: CIRCUITS ASSEMBLY Service Excellence Awards CeremonySanta Clara (CA) Convention Center
Sept. 29-Oct. 2: PCB West 2026Santa Clara (CA) Convention Center
Oct. 16, 23, 30, Nov. 6, 13: Certified Printed Circuit Design TrainingOnline
Oct. 20-22, 2026: TPCA ShowTaipei
Oct. 21, 2026: PCEA webinar: How to be a Great PCB Designeronline
Nov. 4, 2026: PCEA webinar: Designing the Signal Routing to Control Energy in Digital PCBsonline
Feb. 17-19, 2027: Nepcon JapanTokyo
Apr. 27-30, 2027: PCB EastDCU Center, Worcester, MA


 

BOOK-TO-BILLS/MARKET TRENDS
             July Trend
EMS 1.29 Down
Semiconductors          135%        Up
PCBs                                      1.46 Down
Component Sales Sentiment 141.6 Down
Changes are year-over-year.    

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PCB Update is a digital newsletter for PCB design, fabrication and assembly professionals, brought to you by Printed Circuit Engineering Association™. E-mail industry press releases or links to the editors of CIRCUITS ASSEMBLY or PCD&F: pr@pcea.net.


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