ASML CEO: “Without AI, the market today would be very sad”

Those who thought that the semiconductor industry had left the worst of the downturn behind it were in for a bit of a shock on Tuesday, when ASML erroneously published its Q3 results half a day early due to a “technical error.” Citing a “more gradual recovery” than expected, the industry bellwether cut its 2025 sales forecast from 30-40 billion to 30-35 billion euros.

Among those caught off guard appears to be ASML’s management itself, which in July reiterated its message that 2025 would be “a strong year.” In fairness, the industry saw some earthshaking developments over the past weeks, which few could have predicted. Both Intel and Samsung – two of ASML’s biggest customers – are in crisis, with the former making deep cuts and delaying fab projects and the latter openly acknowledging concerns about its ability to compete. Due to these “customer-specific circumstances,” orders – particularly for EUV tools – are being pushed out, ASML CEO Christophe Fouquet explained.