Technology · NEWS EXPLAINER
Applied Materials plans to lift its Besi stake to about 20%—but this is not a takeover
The agreement would more than double Applied’s holding after U.S. antitrust review; the company says it will not seek a board seat or currently go beyond about 20%.
Applied Materials has agreed to increase its BE Semiconductor Industries stake from 9% to approximately 20%, deepening a chip-packaging partnership that started in 2020. The filing makes one timing point clear: the new shares have not yet been delivered.
A roughly 20% holding is significant, but the announcement is not a completed acquisition. Applied describes a long-term investment, disclaims a current plan to go higher and says it will not seek a Besi board seat.
What changed on October 26
Applied Materials signed an accelerated share purchase agreement to add to the 9% Besi stake it bought in April 2025. If the additional shares are delivered, Applied says it would own approximately 20% of Besi’s outstanding shares.
The deal is signed, but delivery is conditional
The Form 8-K says delivery is subject to expiration or termination of the applicable waiting period under the U.S. Hart-Scott-Rodino Act. The disclosure does not give an exact delivery date or purchase price, so approximately 20% is a post-delivery target rather than today’s completed holding.
Why this is not a takeover announcement
Applied calls the position a long-term investment, says it currently has no intention to go beyond approximately 20%, and says it will not seek representation on Besi’s board. Those statements define the present disclosure; they do not create a permanent legal cap on future conduct.
What the companies are building together
Applied and Besi say their collaboration began in 2020 around hybrid bonding and now extends to 3D IC scaling, logic-and-memory integration, thermo-compression bonding and die-on-wafer, die-on-die and die-on-panel platforms. Besi also joined Applied’s EPIC Center as an Innovation Partner.
Why hybrid bonding is commercially relevant
Hybrid bonding directly connects stacked chips to improve speed and energy efficiency. Reuters reported on October 22 that Besi said orders for its hybrid-bonding systems had more than doubled in 2026 versus all of 2025, although that company-reported demand does not guarantee future sales.
What remains unknown
The announcement does not disclose the purchase price, exact number of additional shares, exact completion date, financing terms or new commercial commitments tied to the stake. Readers should separate the signed agreement and stated governance limits from any claim that Applied has acquired or controls Besi.
