Three-phase roadmap prioritizes photonics, power semiconductors, and sensors to advance the “Made in Thailand” chip initiative, targeting over 230,000 new jobs.

BANGKOK, THAILAND – Media OutReach Newswire – 24 September 2026 – Thailand has approved its first national strategy for the semiconductor and advanced electronics industry, establishing a long-term framework to build an integrated domestic ecosystem spanning chip research and design, front-end manufacturing, conventional and advanced assembly, packaging and testing, and high-value electronics applications.

Approved on Thursday by the National Semiconductor and Advanced Electronics Policy Board, chaired by Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister, Mr. Ekniti Nitithanprapas, the strategy targets about $80 billion in cumulative investment and about $150 billion in annual industry revenue by 2050. It also aims to create more than 230,000 new jobs under Thailand’s long-term “Made in Thailand” chip initiative.

“This is Thailand’s first comprehensive national framework for building semiconductor capabilities and moving the country into higher-value activities across the global supply chain,” said Mr. Ekniti. “It gives investors a clear view of our technology priorities, infrastructure commitments and workforce-development plan through 2050.”

The roadmap will be implemented in three phases. By 2030, Thailand will reinforce its established assembly and testing base, scale advanced packaging capabilities and lay the foundations for front-end wafer production. By 2040, it will seek more anchor investors in upstream activities, including chip design, wafer fabrication and advanced-technology manufacturing, to fill gaps in the supply chain. By 2050, Thailand aims to have a complete domestic supply chain. Thai companies are expected to grow into local champions that co-develop innovation and hold key positions in the chain.

The strategy identifies three priority technology platforms aligned with Thailand’s industrial strengths and global demand: photonics for artificial intelligence, data centers and high-speed communications; power semiconductors for electric vehicles, energy-storage systems and power grids; and sensors, building on Thailand’s micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) capabilities, for connected devices, automation, automotive, smart devices and medical applications.

Implementation will be supported through five coordinated mechanisms: tax incentives, grants and low-interest financing; high-skilled workforce development with industry and academic partners; upgraded research and chip-design infrastructure and partnerships between foreign and Thai companies; investment-ready infrastructure, including cluster sites, reliable water and electricity, clean energy and disaster-resilience systems; and regulatory reform and business facilitation for foreign investors and Thai suppliers including a broader market access through FTAs.

The board also approved a workforce program under the national strategy coordinated by the Ministry of Higher Education, Science, Research and Innovation with universities, research institutes, industry and international partners. By 2030, the program aims to develop 86,600 people, including 84,900 highly skilled personnel and approximately 1,700 advanced researchers, through specialized curricula, industry placements, overseas training, and programs for faculty members, researchers and technical instructors.

The strategy builds on strong investment momentum. From 2023 through the first half of 2026, the BOI received investment-promotion applications for 879 semiconductor and advanced electronics projects worth about $27.2 billion (909 billion baht). The projects span chip production at various stages, printed circuit boards (PCBs), hard disk drives, AI servers, networking and power-management equipment, and electronic parts for vehicles and office equipment.

Infineon Technologies, the world’s largest maker of power semiconductors and automotive chips, will open its first Thai factory in Samut Prakan on Oct. 1. The facility will produce and package advanced power modules for electric vehicles, energy storage, clean energy and advanced electronics. Infineon also plans to establish an R&D center, develop joint curricula with Thai educational institutions and employ more than 5,000 people in Thailand at full operation.

Thailand’s expanding ecosystem also includes Foxsemicon Integrated Technology in semiconductor-equipment supply, Analog Devices in analog and mixed-signal chips, Zhen Ding Technology in printed circuit boards, Terahop in optical communications, and Malaysian Pacific Industries (MPI) in semiconductor assembly, packaging and testing.

“The ‘Made in Thailand’ chip initiative will bring together the country’s technology, infrastructure, investment and talent through a strong, coordinated and comprehensive national plan to turn this ambition into reality,” said Mr. Narit Therdsteerasukdi, Secretary General of the Thailand Board of Investment (BOI). “For semiconductor investors, specialized talent is as critical to site selection as infrastructure and incentives. The strategy is also designed to provide a dependable workforce pipeline for faster ramp-up and long-term expansion.”

Note: Investment, revenue and job figures are strategy targets. The U.S. dollar equivalent of 909 billion baht is based on an exchange rate of approximately 33.44 baht per dollar.

Hashtag: #Thailandboardofinvestment #BOI #FDI #Investment

https://www.boi.go.th/en/index/

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Thailand Board of Investment (BOI)

Established in 1966, the Office of the Board of Investment (BOI) has continuously played an essential role for over 60 years in promoting value-adding investment for the country, from both foreign and Thai investors, to enhance national competitiveness and drive towards a new era of sustainable and balanced growth.

Investment Services Center- PR Section, The Office of the Board of Investment (BOI)

555 Vibhavadi-Rangsit Road, Chatuchak Bangkok 10900 Tel. +66 (0) 2553 8111, Fax: +66 (0) 2553 8222

Bringing Continuous Fiber Reinforcement (CFR) Technology to Local Market, Targeting Aviation Maintenance, Electronics Manufacturing, and Medical Devices Launch Event Successfully Held at Hong Kong Productivity Council

HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach Newswire – 24 September 2026 – Markforged, a leading provider of industrial additive manufacturing solutions, today proudly announced the official appointment of Unotech Limited (“Unotech”) as its exclusive distributor in Hong Kong. Unotech will fully manage the sales, technical support, and application development for Markforged’s product portfolio in the region, delivering comprehensive end-to-end support for local industries. The official launch event was held at the Inno Network of the Hong Kong Productivity Council (HKPC).

The event kicked off with an opening and ribbon-cutting ceremony hosted by executives from both companies, followed by the first live demonstration of Markforged’s patented Continuous Fiber Reinforcement (CFR) technology. This breakthrough technology overcomes the material limitations of traditional 3D printing by precisely laying down continuous strands of carbon fiber, Kevlar, and high-strength, high-temperature fiberglass inside the part during printing. The resulting components match the strength and rigidity of machined aluminum, making them ready for quick use in manufacturing jigs, fixtures, robotic grippers, production tooling, and end-use functional parts.

Local manufacturing and engineering units face pressing dual challenges: compressed lead times and a growing share of high-mix, low-volume orders. Custom manufacturing tools—such as fixtures, assembly jigs, inspection gauges, and automated grippers—are the hardest hit. Markforged’s additive manufacturing platform effectively shifts production capabilities directly back to the facility floor. By enabling “print-on-demand” iterations right after design changes, it significant reduces traditional tooling lead times that usually stretch into weeks. For Hong Kong’s manufacturing environment, characterized by limited space, high labor costs, and tight delivery schedules, this digital solution significantly leverages operational and clinical efficiencies.

Leveraging Unotech’s robust industrial technology network in Hong Kong, Markforged’s advanced hardware and materials can be efficiently and reliably integrated across universities, research institutes, and manufacturing facilities. Backed by an in-house

team of application engineers, Unotech provides on-site installation, professional training, and tailored application development to help clients shorten supply chains, reduce inventory, and enhance production resilience.

Ivan Siu, Sales Director of Unotech Limited, stated: “We are deeply honored to partner with Markforged, a pioneer in industrial 3D printing. Combining Markforged’s technological dominance with our local footprint, we are confident in delivering highly cost-effective, reliable, and innovative manufacturing choices to Hong Kong. Our dedicated technical team will focus on mission-critical industries, including aviation maintenance, electronics manufacturing, medical devices, and precision engineering. These sectors demand superior part strength and rapid turnaround times, which perfectly match the capabilities of CFR technology. We will continue to strengthen our local engineering capabilities to drive the long-term growth of Hong Kong’s smart manufacturing ecosystem.”

Brian Chen, General Manager of Greater China and Vietnam at Markforged, added: “Hong Kong stands as a vital technology and trade hub within the Greater Bay Area, with a sophisticated customer base spanning multiple advanced manufacturing sectors. We chose Unotech as our exclusive partner because of their deep local technical expertise and comprehensive after-sales service network. An exclusive partnership concentrates accountability, ensuring our customers have a single, seamless point of contact for total peace of mind. Markforged will directly share our extensive repository of case studies and validated material data from the Greater China region with the Unotech team, empowering them to maximize operational efficiency for our medical, aviation, and precision engineering clients.”

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1. Markforged appointed Unotech as its exclusive distributor in Hong Kong, with executives from both companies hosting the opening and ribbon-cutting ceremony.

2. Brian Chen, General Manager of Greater China and Vietnam at Markforged said that the company chose Unotech as their exclusive partner because of Unotech’s deep local technical expertise and comprehensive after-sales service network.

3. Ivan Siu, Sales Director of Unotech Limited said they were deeply honored to partner with Markforged.

4.&5 First live demonstration of Markforged’s patented Continuous Fiber Reinforcement technology at the event.

6. Markforged and Unotech ‘s management pose for a group photo with industry representatives.

Hashtag: #Unotech

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

About Markforged

Markforged is an industrial additive manufacturing company that enables manufacturers to create strong, end-use parts, fixtures, and spares right on the factory floor through its Digital Forge platform and Continuous Fiber Reinforcement (CFR) technology. This approach shortens supply chains, reduces inventory, and enhances production resilience. Its product line includes industrial-grade composite and metal additive manufacturing systems, serving sectors such as aerospace, automotive, electronics, medical devices, and precision engineering.

About Unotech Limited

Unotech Limited is an industrial technology solution provider in Hong Kong. By introducing smart manufacturing and 3D printing technologies, Unotech delivers equipment supply, application development, and technical support services to local research, educational, and manufacturing institutions.

HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach Newswire – 24 September 2026 – As World Pharmacists Day approaches, AS Watson celebrates the contribution of more than 3,300 pharmacists and nearly 10,000 health professionals who help customers proactively manage their health and wellbeing every day through its network of over 1,770 pharmacies worldwide.

Driven by growing customer interest in preventive healthcare and self-care, AS Watson recorded 10% growth in global health sales over the past year, reflecting increasing demand for products and services that support overall wellbeing and healthier lifestyles.

Peter Macnab, International Commercial Director of AS Watson, said, “As healthcare continues to evolve from treatment to prevention, AS Watson is supporting customers with trusted professional advice, personalised and innovative O+O (Offline plus Online) healthcare solutions. We proudly recognise our pharmacists and healthcare professionals whose expertise and dedication make a meaningful difference to the health of customers and communities every day.”

AS Watson Unveils Global Health Research
To better understand evolving customer health behaviours, AS Watson unveiled findings from its Global Health Research, conducted by WISE, its customer experience insights division, among over 11,000 respondents across 10 markets in Europe and Asia.

The survey found that health concerns(43%) are the main driver of health product adoption, with professional advice (41%) from healthcare experts remaining a key influence alongside recommendations from family and friends (32%).

Customers are increasingly adopting an offline and online approach to product research, combining online research(82%), health professional consultations (49%) and in-store product discovery(44%). When making purchase decisions, they consider a combination of price and promotion(56%), brand trust(48%), and product benefits(45%).

The findings highlight the increasingly important role pharmacists play in preventive healthcare, helping customers make informed health decisions through trusted professional advice and guidance.

Peter concluded, “The future of healthcare is increasingly preventive, personalised and accessible. By bringing together trusted expertise, personalised care and O+O innovation, AS Watson is building a healthcare ecosystem that helps people take charge of their health with confidence. Our ambition is to make preventive healthcare more accessible and relevant to every customer, helping create healthier lives and communities worldwide.”

Hashtag: #ASWatson

https://www.aswatson.com/our-company/o-and-o-strategy/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/aswatson/
https://www.facebook.com/ASWGroupofficial/
https://www.instagram.com/aswatsongroup_corp/

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About AS Watson Group

Established in 1841, AS Watson Group is one of the world’s longest-standing and most recognised retail companies with roots in Asia. Today, the company operates over 17,000 stores across 12 retail brands in 31 markets, employing 130,000 people globally. This makes AS Watson Group the largest international health and beauty retailer in the world.

In the fiscal year 2025, AS Watson Group reported revenue of over US$26 billion. The company’s technology-enabled O+O (Offline plus Online) platforms serve over 6 billion shoppers annually, seamlessly integrating physical and digital retail experiences.

AS Watson Group supported over 180 charitable and non-profit organisations every year, dedicating over 40,000 hours of volunteer work to serve over 370,000 people in need in our operating markets.

AS Watson Group is also a member of the world-renowned multinational conglomerate CK Hutchison Holdings Limited, which has four core businesses – ports and related services, retail, infrastructure and telecommunications in over 50 countries.

Please visit www.aswatson.com/our-company/o-and-o-strategy/ for more information.

About WISE

WISE stands for Watson Insights on Shoppers Experience. It is the research division of AS Watson, the world’s largest international health and beauty retailer. By constantly having conversations with a panel that comprises of over 180 million members across 31 markets, WISE focuses on developing customer insights in beauty care, personal care, health and wellbeing to help better understand and meet the needs of today’s customers.

Following the Desert diamonds Asian launch, natural diamonds open a further contemporary chapter

BEIJING, CHINA – Media OutReach Newswire – 24 September 2026 – Carrying forward the afterglow of the dazzling Desert diamonds Asian launch, the short-form drama ‘You Shine So Bright’ lands with cinematic images and a finely worked story, setting the lasting allure of natural diamonds within the landscape of contemporary city life. Both a continuation and a renewal of De Beers Group’s storytelling for the natural diamond category, the series connects the stones to modern living through narrative, presenting their core qualities across a range of settings—fashion appeal, emotional value, and origins that can be scientifically identified and verified. The drama goes live on 21 September on Hongguo, Douyin, Kuaishou and other platforms, showing natural diamonds as they are worn from one day to the next while deepening consumers’ understanding of, and trust in, the qualities that set these stones apart.

Desert diamonds are natural diamonds raised into a contemporary image. Drawing on what the desert stands for—age, rarity and the refining work of time—the category answers both the preciousness of a stone formed over billions of years and a younger generation’s regard for authenticity, individuality and inner radiance. Since the Desert diamonds Asian launch in Shanghai in July, De Beers Group has used the drama form to bring natural diamonds more widely into daily life as a vehicle for shared stories, emotional connection and inheritance. The drama also carries the truth of Desert diamonds to a wider group of young consumers, turning what began as a single content experiment into an elevated telling of the Desert diamonds story for the present day.

A new narrative form: widening the conversation through short-form drama

As Gen Z and younger audiences become a significant force in the market, the way content is consumed has shifted. De Beers Group answers that shift with a premium short-form drama, its plot carefully constructed and its storytelling close to lived experience. The ideas, values and meaning a natural diamond carries are folded into the turns of the story without visible seams, surfacing between the movement of the plot and the feelings of its characters, and moving the viewer before they have noticed. With a tight narrative rhythm, sharply drawn characters and a range of everyday settings, the short-form drama has become a new kind of content that finds an echo with younger audiences. ‘You Shine So Bright’ sets natural diamonds inside its characters’ relationships and daily lives, showing their fashion appeal, emotional value and traceable origin where story and feeling meet, so that younger viewers rediscover the charm and meaning of natural diamonds from a vantage point closer to their own lives, and find in the stones a value that has lasted and still feels current.

The drama brings together well-known actors from mainland China and Hong Kong with an experienced creative team for a production made to premium standards, in which visual style, costume and jewellery pairing have each been worked through in detail. Rather than conventional brand placement, the series leads with story, folding the identification and traceability of natural diamonds—and the technology behind the Tracr platform—into the plot itself. Costume and natural diamond jewellery are matched to each character’s temperament and setting, so that the pieces are not only part of a look but echo who the characters are and how their feelings develop, giving the series a visual aesthetic that pairs fashionable taste with a refined finish.

Ten looks, ten ways of wearing diamonds

Natural diamonds move with the leads through work, social life, leisure and love, versatile enough to sit at ease in everyday moments and grand occasions alike. The series builds ten jewellery looks, spanning banquets and parties, romantic evenings, the working day, sport and leisure, and time at home. In full dress or in something plain, the stones reflect a different side of the wearer’s character and style each time, offering women today a range of ideas for how diamonds might be worn—jewellery not only lighting a look but becoming a language of personal style.

Through its characters and the turns of its plot, ‘You Shine So Bright’ gives natural diamonds a fuller narrative weight across different settings. A diamond shapes a character’s style, and it enters the story alongside emotional developments and the milestones of a life, so that jewellery, character and feeling are woven together, showing the many ways a natural diamond finds its place in daily life.

An heirloom carries love forward

‘You Shine So Bright’ is a premium short-form drama that draws together family inheritance, romance, professional rivalry and mystery. The story turns on a jewellery group and two young creative companies, and amid rivalry at work, clashes of feeling and the growth of its characters, the disappearance of an heirloom natural diamond draws out a series of puzzles and becomes the thread that carries the plot forward. As the truth emerges, so do the love, the inheritance and the real value that the diamond holds.

As the story develops, the meaning of a natural diamond extends from outward style to inward feeling. It witnesses love and commitment, it accompanies personal growth and it marks the valuable moments of a life—a lasting choice, whether to reward oneself or to keep a good memory close. With family inheritance and sincere feeling beneath it, the drama makes the natural diamond a token that links past, present and future, holding love and commitment through the passage of the years.

Formed over billions of years, every natural diamond holds the preciousness and the rarity that only time confers, and no two are exactly alike—as no two attachments, and no two family stories, carry the same mark. When a stone passes from one moment of a life to the next, and from one generation’s keeping into the next generation’s company, what is handed on is not only a lasting brilliance but the memories, the feelings and the stories that come with it.

Scientifically identifiable, traceable to source: trust built on truth

When the disappearance of the heirloom drives the story to its height, the identification and traceability of a natural diamond enter the mystery as evidence. As the investigator works step by step towards the truth, the science by which a diamond can be identified and its origin traced is written into the unfolding plot, and a gripping story shows what makes a natural diamond authentic, transparent and worthy of trust.

The Tracr natural diamond traceability platform uses blockchain technology to give each stone its own digital identity, recording the information attached to it from source through to retail so that its origin and passage can be checked. Through a form close to the audiences it reaches, ‘You Shine So Bright’ carries the fashion appeal, emotional value and specialist technology of natural diamonds into the telling. The core values of identification and traceability emerge naturally through the characters and the plot, so that a viewer caught up in the story also comes to understand where a natural diamond truly comes from and how openly that origin can be shown, building deeper knowledge and firmer trust.

A natural diamond arrives across an immense span of time, and holds a lasting feeling as it passes between generations. From the first appearance of the Desert diamonds idea, to the jewellery that carried it into daily life, to this story told in light and shadow, natural diamonds continue to find new creative forms in which to speak to one generation after another. The truth, the preciousness and the singularity that come from nature do not fade with time, and they take on fuller meaning in the life of the present. However the years turn, every true and singular light is worth treasuring, remembering and passing on.

‘You Shine So Bright’ can be watched on Hongguo, Douyin, Weixin Channels, CCTV Video, Weibo, Baijiahao, iQIYI, Tencent Video, YouTube and TikTok, by searching “You Shine So Bright”.

With Special Thanks To
Jewellery Sponsors: CHOW TAI FOOK, Chow Sang Sang, TSL Jewellery
Fashion Sponsors: Betti Haute Couture, Betti Bespoke, Belmont 1995, BonBom, INNIU, LULU CHEUNG, pushBUTTON, TUSCAN’S, VICTOR CHAN STUDIO

For more information on natural diamonds, please follow and visit the official channels below:

De Beers Group official website www.debeersgroup.com

Natural Diamonds Instagram @ADiamondisForeverhk Website www.adiamondisforever.com/zh-hk

Hashtag: #ADiamondisForever #Desertdiamonds #NaturalDiamonds #Diamonds #YouShineSoBright

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

About De Beers Group

Established in 1888, De Beers Group is the world’s leading diamond company with expertise in the exploration, mining, marketing and retailing of diamonds. Together with its joint venture partners, De Beers Group employs more than 20,000 people across the diamond pipeline and is the world’s largest diamond producer by value, with diamond mining operations in Botswana, Canada, Namibia and South Africa. Innovation sits at the heart of De Beers Group’s strategy as it develops a portfolio of offers that span the diamond value chain, including its jewellery houses, De Beers London and Forevermark, and other pioneering solutions such as diamond sourcing and traceability initiatives Tracr and GemFair. De Beers Group also provides leading services and technology to the diamond industry in the form of education and laboratory services and a wide range of diamond sorting, detection and classification technology services. De Beers Group is committed to ‘Building Forever,’ a holistic and integrated approach to sustainability that underpins our efforts to create meaningful impact for the people and places where our diamonds are discovered. Building Forever focuses on three key areas where, through collaborations and partnerships around the globe, we have an enhanced ability to drive positive impact; Livelihoods, Climate and Nature. De Beers Group is a member of the Anglo American plc group. For further information, visit www.debeersgroup.com.

About Building Forever

In 2020 De Beers Group established a set of sustainability goals to deliver a blueprint for lasting positive impact in the countries and regions where it operates and across the diamond value chain, so that every diamond it discovers and recovers brings enduring benefit to the people and environments of the places it comes from. Building Forever sets out a comprehensive framework built on four pillars: leading ethical practices across the industry, partnering for thriving communities, protecting the natural world and accelerating equal opportunity — guiding the Group towards a fairer, safer, cleaner and healthier future in which communities prosper and the environment is protected. De Beers Group works to raise industry standards, improve transparency of diamond provenance and improve conditions for artisanal miners. Across its operations, the Group follows best practice in biodiversity, water management, air quality, greenhouse gas emissions, waste management, and mine closure and rehabilitation. De Beers Group also works with stakeholders to build a sustainable future and to raise living standards in the communities where it operates, particularly in health and wellbeing, education and skills development, economic diversification and livelihood support. The Group actively promotes inclusive economic development and welcomes diverse perspectives to help shape the future of its business, its communities and wider society. It places particular emphasis on addressing the industry’s long-standing gender imbalance and on encouraging a new and more diverse generation of talent into the diamond and jewellery industry.