Even though a large fraction of the global economy has yet to recover, the semiconductor related industry is doing well in spite the pandemic. The sales of electronic goods worldwide is projected to be $500 Billion (US) annually in 2021. And, according to some estimates, the electronics market may top $1 Trillion (US) in sales by 2030, essentially doubling the market in ten years.

There are a few questions that one may want to ask, like: why is this happening and how did we get here? is this projected growth realistic and sustainable for the next decade? speaking of sustainable, how is the industry addressing the need to be consistent with United Nations SDGs? what are the technical challenges that we are facing going forward? ...the list goes on.

Of course, the author does not have a crystal ball, but will attempt to give a balanced view on factors that may explain how we got here, where we might be headed, and what we need to do collectively. Input and views from a wide range of industry and academic experts and institutions will be presented in this invited presentation.