ASML's strong orders ease fears AI spending boom is running out of steam
The chip-tool maker said customers were already interested in orders for 2029 and 2030.
TL;DR
- ASML said customers were asking about advanced chipmaking-tool orders for 2029 and 2030, Reuters reported.
- The company raised its 2026 sales outlook after reporting third-quarter revenue and profit, according to Reuters.
- The long-dated order interest is evidence of customer planning, but it does not settle whether current AI investment will earn adequate returns.
Reuters reported that ASML’s customers were looking to place orders for advanced chipmaking tools for 2029 and 2030. The company’s equipment is used to produce advanced semiconductors, including chips used in AI infrastructure. [1] [2]
ASML reported third-quarter net sales of EUR11.7 billion and net profit of EUR4.96 billion, and forecast fourth-quarter sales of EUR14.2 billion to EUR15.2 billion. Reuters said the company raised its full-year sales outlook to EUR44 billion to EUR45 billion. [1]
CEO Christophe Fouquet said customers were showing strong interest in placing orders several years ahead. The company also said existing capacity plans would need to expand further to meet demand. [1]
The order outlook supports the view that chipmakers continue to plan capacity, but the reports do not establish that all prospective orders will become completed deliveries or profitable investment. The signal is also temporally distant: equipment orders for 2029–2030 do not resolve the near-term returns on AI spending. [1]
Why it matters
Long-lead chipmaking equipment links current AI infrastructure spending to capacity decisions several years out, while leaving the eventual return on that capital uncertain.
Editor's note
Headline is verbatim from Reuters. The HN discussion is included under the runbook’s discussion-plus-linked-article rule; factual claims are sourced to Reuters.