Tech, Unpacked
Why Chip Manufacturing Is So Capital-Intensive (And Getting Worse)
Modern chipmaking is expensive because it’s no longer just manufacturing—it’s precision physics at industrial scale. Producing advanced chips requires extreme machinery, ultra-clean environments, and years of upfront investment before a single usable chip ships.
Stablecoins: What They Are, and How They Hold the Peg
As the name suggests, stablecoins are cryptocurrencies designed to stay stable.
They are built to hold a steady value by being pegged 1:1 to a fiat currency, usually the U.S. dollar. In that case, one stablecoin should equal one dollar.
Think of them as digital dollars that move on crypto rails: they can be sent globally, 24/7, and integrated into apps—without the wild price swings of Bitcoin or many other tokens.
Quantum Computers: Why They’re Different
A quantum computer is a special kind of machine built to tackle a few problems that are almost impossible for regular computers to solve quickly.
CPUs vs GPUs: How They Work And When You Need Them
In Plain English: A CPU and a GPU are two different kinds of computer chips. The CPU runs most of your computer’s everyday tasks like opening files, running apps, and managing instructions. The GPU is built to handle many similar tasks at the same time, which makes it faster for certain jobs like graphics, video, and AI.
What’s a Nanometer, And Why Chipmakers Obsess Over It
A nanometer is a unit for measuring things that are extremely small. One nanometer is one-billionth of a meter.
To put that in perspective: a human hair is roughly 80,000 to 100,000 nanometers wide. A nanometer is like slicing that hair into tens of thousands of pieces and taking one slice.
Why Data Centers Are Measured in MW/GW
Editor’s Note: Welcome to TECH, UNPACKED - our new explainer series built for anyone who wants to follow Asia’s tech story without getting lost in jargon.