Applied Materials expects artificial intelligence to drive approximately 80% of wafer fab equipment growth in 2026, the company's chief executive said at The Six Five Summit: AI Unleashed 2026.
Gary Dickerson, president and CEO of Applied Materials, highlighted the company's expanding role in AI infrastructure, noting that wafer fab equipment demand tied to AI accounts for the majority of this year's projected growth. He added that the company's service business is expanding at a 20% compound annual growth rate, while advanced packaging revenue is increasing by more than 50% this year.
Dickerson described AI as "the biggest inflection of our lifetimes," asserting that it will transform industries and individual consumers alike. He emphasized the strategic importance of AI compute leadership, stating, "The race for AI compute leadership is the most important race that will determine who wins and loses."
The executive outlined Applied Materials' investments in AI-enabling technologies, including a $5 billion commitment to the Exponential Process Innovation Commons (EPIC) Center in Silicon Valley. The facility supports research and development at scales ranging from 1 to 2 nanometers, with process control measured in angstroms. Dickerson also noted that future advanced packages may integrate over 300 chips, 500 billion transistors, and 2,000 miles of wiring, while smartphone processors already contain tens of billions of transistors, 60 miles of wiring, and more than 1,000 manufacturing steps.
Applied Materials reported trailing twelve-month revenue of $30.84 billion and a market capitalization of $376.55 billion. The company's shares have surged 87% year-to-date and nearly 193% over the past year, according to InvestingPro data indicating valuation above fair value.
Dickerson also stated that the company holds the number one position in three primary AI-driven wafer fab equipment segments: advanced logic, memory including High Bandwidth Memory, and advanced packaging with multi-chip connectivity.
The remarks were delivered during the opening keynote of the third day of The Six Five Summit: AI Unleashed 2026, an event hosted by Daniel and Pat.
