A photomask (also known as a “light mask”; in China, it is called “photomask (light mask)”) is one of the most critical categories of consumables in the semiconductor manufacturing process—and also one of the easiest for investors to overlook. In April 2026, Citrini Research analyst Jukan pointed out that “HBM4 brings an outsourced photomask market that did not exist in the past, and Japanese companies will become the biggest winners.” Within just a week, The Seoul Economic Daily confirmed that this quarter, Samsung and SK hynix’s outsourced photomask revenue has doubled year over year. This article delivers a full breakdown—from what a photomask is and what kind of photomasks HBM4 needs, to why Japanese firms dominate the field, and how investors can get involved. What is a photomask A photomask is a template used during semiconductor chip manufacturing to transfer circuit patterns onto a silicon wafer via a “copying/printing circuit pattern” process. At its core, it is a highly precise quartz glass plate; the surface is coated with a chromium metal layer with a thickness of tens of nanometers to hundreds of nanometers, and through electric

Citrini Research analyst Jukan put forward the view that outsourcing HBM4 mask manufacturing creates a new market, and gained industry confirmation in a short period of time. Revenue from mask outsourcing at Samsung and SK hynix doubled, signaling a major shift in the internal versus external manufacturing mix. DNP and TOPPAN could become the main beneficiaries. Next, relevant earnings reports and data should be monitored to determine whether the trend will persist; investors should carefully consider when to enter and exit the related stocks.

South Korea's AI semiconductor startups recorded hundreds of billions to over a trillion won in net losses in 2025, but this represents an accounting artifact rather than operational failure. The losses stem from the revaluation of convertible preferred shares (RCPS) under K-IFRS accounting

Farcaster was acquired, Lens changed hands, platforms shut down one after another—on the surface, decentralized social appears to be declining, but the underlying data of identity, wallets, and prediction markets tell a completely different story. This article originates from an article written by Mask Network and has been edited and translated by Blockchain.News. (Previous recap: What is Terafab? Musk says global chip shortage needs 2%, how to build a factory "bigger than TSMC"?) (Background supplement: 72 hours before fleeing Tehran: $200 exchanged for 160 million in cash, Iran's fiat currency collapse and the real demand for stablecoins) Table of Contents Toggle Macro market: DID increases 18 times in a decade Identity data: The real user profile behind 17.76 million mappings User spectrum: 1% deep participation vs 20% identity reserve N

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