The global semiconductor market has reached a milestone. According to the latest data from the World Semiconductor Trade Statistics (WSTS), the global semiconductor market size soared to $208 billion in the third quarter of 2025, breaking the $200 billion mark for the first time. The growth momentum hit a multi-year high - with a quarter-on-quarter increase of 15.8% (the highest since Q2 2009) and a year-on-year surge of 25.1% (the best performance since Q4 2021), far exceeding early-year expectations.
The ranking of leading enterprises is clear, with NVIDIA continuing to take the lead. In the Q3 revenue ranking, NVIDIA firmly topped the list with $57 billion in revenue, widening the gap with peers by virtue of its absolute advantage in AI chips. Samsung and SK Hynix ranked second and third with $23.9 billion and $17.6 billion respectively, with the recovery of memory business supporting their revenue.
Segmented fields show a "dual-drive" pattern of memory and non-memory. Memory companies achieved particularly rapid growth: Kioxia took the lead with a 31% quarter-on-quarter increase, followed by Micron, SanDisk, Samsung and SK Hynix with increases of 22%, 21%, 19% and 10% respectively. In the non-memory field, Sony Imaging led with an amazing 51% quarter-on-quarter growth; NVIDIA, AMD, Broadcom and ST also achieved increases of 22%, 20%, 16% and 15% respectively. Notably, MediaTek was the only enterprise with declining revenue, down 5.5%.
The industry shows a "differentiated trend" in Q4 revenue expectations. Nine enterprises have given growth forecasts, with increases ranging from 14% (NVIDIA) to 1.4% (Renesas Electronics), indicating that leading enterprises still have confidence in the market. Another five enterprises expect revenue decline, with declines ranging from 1.3% (onsemi) to 9.2% (Sony Imaging), and some enterprises have begun to adjust their operation rhythm.
Undoubtedly, artificial intelligence (AI) is the core driver of this growth wave. All memory enterprises have confirmed that AI memory for data centers is the fastest-growing business segment; the revenue growth of NVIDIA and AMD is also mainly attributed to the strong demand for AI chips. In addition to AI, the mobile market also contributed to growth - Qualcomm and MediaTek saw recovery signals in the mobile phone field. The automotive field remained flat overall, with some enterprises in the inventory adjustment stage.
From a long-term perspective, the global semiconductor market grew by 21.2% year-on-year in the first three quarters of 2025. Among them, NVIDIA performed the most brilliantly, with its revenue surging by 62% year-on-year in the first three quarters; mainstream memory enterprises also achieved a 21% year-on-year growth driven by AI. Currently, there is little divergence in the industry's forecast for full-year 2025 growth: Yole Group expects 14%, while Semiconductor Intelligence gives an optimistic forecast of 22%.
The market prospect of 2026 is full of variables. Semiconductor Intelligence points out that economic uncertainty will continue, the AI field, which was over-relied on in 2025, may see slowing growth, while PC, smartphone and automotive fields that performed weakly this year are expected to rebound. It is initially estimated that the global semiconductor market growth rate will remain between 12% and 18% in 2026, and the industry will enter a more balanced development stage.
ICgoodFind Summary: AI remains the core growth engine, and the coordinated development of multiple fields in 2026 will drive the semiconductor market forward steadily.
