"With more than 18 fabs being built in the U.S. alone this year, parts suppliers are also putting weight on the U.S. market ahead of a boom." (an official at a semiconductor equipment parts company) On the 11th (local time), at SEMICON West 2023, North America's largest semiconductor equipment exhibition, held at the Moscone Center in San Francisco, people wearing neck-strap name badges gathered at the exhibition hall in small groups. Unlike typical visitors who move from booth to booth listening to business introductions, some were seen staying at one booth for a long time to discuss practical partnership arrangements. Previously, the U.S. market was not important, in either sales or strategy terms, for semiconductor equipment parts makers, but now some appeared determined to overturn market-share standings through the growth of the U.S. market. Pfeiffer Vacuum, the No. 3 maker of semiconductor vacuum measurement equipment, also took part in the exhibition with a large lineup of products including pumps and helium detectors. June DeLorice, customer account manager at Pfeiffer Vacuum, whose major customers include Lam Research and Micron, stressed, "We currently generate $800 million in sales, but with growth in the U.S. market, our goal is for sales next year to rise 25% to $1 billion," adding, "We are looking at ways to raise our market share to No. 2 during this boom." The market size of each parts supplier's specialized product line is also growing rapidly. Austria's SICONEX, the No. 1 company specializing in wet benches used in cleaning processes, holds more than 50% of the overall market but has annual sales of about 100 million euros (130 billion won). A SICONEX official conveyed his expectations, saying, "We expect demand to grow quickly, so the market itself will grow rapidly." These companies typically see the real boom from the point when the interior environment is built out after fabs are constructed. For this reason, they are entering the U.S. market now by establishing joint ventures and the like. Korean fitting and valve maker DK-LOK also established a joint venture, DK-LOK America, in the U.S. in May. DK-LOK CEO Kim Hyun-soo, who personally went out to sell at the exhibition, said, "Our export value to the U.S. market is growing 50% at a time," adding, "Total sales this year are projected at 130 billion won, and the U.S. market is driving that in a big way." He added, "DK-LOK is also considering participating in the U.S. CHIPS program." Korean companies also had a clear presence that day. Of the roughly 600 participating companies overall, about 50 were Korean, and the 11 companies with booths in the Korea Pavilion, led by the KOTRA (Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency) Silicon Valley Trade Center, also drew strong interest. AIBIZ, a third-year startup offering an AI-based yield-improvement solution, also signaled its intention to enter the U.S. market. Through collaboration with DB HiTek, it currently has its solution installed on 30 semiconductor production tools and is expected to expand this to 400 within three months. AIBIZ CEO Ha Seung-jae said confidently, "For a company that generates trillions of won in sales, improving semiconductor yield by 1 percentage point has a sales-boosting effect of more than 10 billion won," adding, "Currently there is no clear leader in solutions that improve yield with AI algorithms, so we have a chance to win." Meanwhile, Chinese companies were relatively inconspicuous that day. As U.S.-China tensions have effectively made it difficult for Chinese equipment makers to do business with the U.S., they are now barely maintaining a presence, centered on semiconductor process consumables suppliers. An official at China's CX Tech, a maker of chemicals for epoxy processes, described the mood, saying, "We attended because there are no sanctions on consumables," but adding, "I noticed only about 10 Chinese participating companies."