Our Top 5 Insights from IMAPS DPC 2025
The NHanced team has just returned from an insightful week at the IMAPS Device Packaging Conference (DPC) in Phoenix, where we shared with potential customers our latest activities in hybrid bonding and interposers, both Si and glass.
Beyond the technical sessions, we had highly productive discussions with both large and emerging players who were interested in learning about our heterogeneous integration and hybrid bonding. Many of these customers expressed a desire for domestic capabilities for advanced packaging.
Here are five major takeaways from this year’s event that will shape the next phase of advanced packaging innovation.
1. Hybrid Bonding is Defining the Future of Advanced Packaging
The consensus across technical sessions and informal discussions was clear: hybrid bonding has moved from an emerging technology to the foundation of next-generation packaging. Multiple presenters showcased how it enables denser interconnects for chiplet architectures and gave impressive demonstrations of die-to-die and die-to-wafer bonding. The most striking takeaway was the speed at which manufacturing capacity is ramping up.
Why it matters:
As hybrid bonding becomes the backbone of advanced heterogeneous integration, early expertise in designing for this technology will be a key differentiator. At NHanced, we are already helping clients optimize their chiplet architectures for hybrid bonding, ensuring seamless integration with evolving foundry and OSAT capabilities.
2. The Race to Build Domestic Advanced Packaging Capacity is Accelerating
A major theme, both in sessions and private meetings, was the urgency around domestic packaging capabilities. The discussions weren’t about whether to reshore, but about how quickly US-based capacity can scale.
Why it matters:
For companies in the heterogeneous integration space, the push for domestic capabilities creates significant opportunities. NHanced is actively working with partners to fill design and development gaps, ensuring that companies are ready to leverage domestic packaging capacity as it comes online.
3. Infrastructure Gaps in the U.S. Advanced Packaging Ecosystem Remain a Major Challenge
While the enthusiasm for domestic advanced packaging is high, serious infrastructure challenges persist. Speakers identified three critical gaps:
- Advanced substrate manufacturing:
The U.S. lags Asia in high-density organic and glass substrates. - Equipment supply chains:
Some of the most crucial packaging tools are entirely dependent on overseas suppliers. - Specialized materials:
The industry is still searching for domestic alternatives to high-performance bonding adhesives and dielectric materials.
A key takeaway from discussions with OSAT leaders was that government investment alone won’t solve these challenges. New private-sector partnerships and business models will be required to scale a competitive domestic ecosystem.
Why it matters:
For NHanced, these gaps are both a challenge and an opportunity. As an engineering partner focused on system-level optimization, we actively help clients bridge the design-to-manufacturing divide, ensuring their packaging strategies align with current and future domestic capabilities.
4. Interposer Technology is Rapidly Evolving Beyond Silicon
Historically, silicon interposers have been the standard for high-performance computing applications. However, this year’s conference showcased a major shift: impressive advances in organic, glass, and composite interposers.
Why it matters:
Interposer diversification gives companies greater options. At NHanced, we’re already incorporating these emerging materials into our interposer workflows, helping clients make informed trade-offs based on performance, cost, and manufacturability.
5. AI’s Impact on Packaging is Shifting from Raw Compute to System-Level Optimization
The next phase of AI hardware innovation won’t just be about raw performance — it will be about optimizing the entire system. Companies are moving away from a “compute at all costs” mindset toward a more balanced approach that optimizes power, performance, and cost across the entire package.
Why it matters:
This shift validates NHanced’s approach to heterogeneous integration. We focus on optimizing thermal, electrical, and mechanical performance at the system level. As AI architectures become more complex, the need for expert packaging co-design will only grow.
Building Industry Connections
One of the most valuable aspects of IMAPS DPC 2025 was the opportunity to engage with key industry players. The 3D InCites’ Backyard Olympics fostered promising conversations with major players as well as emerging companies working on novel substrate and interposer technologies. These connections reinforce that our Foundry 2.0 and system-level optimization strategy are well-aligned with the industry’s direction.
Looking Ahead
IMAPS DPC 2025 made it clear: the advanced packaging landscape is evolving faster than ever. In the coming years, the key differentiators will be widespread application of hybrid bonding, a supply of domestic interposers, increased onshoring of advanced packaging, and a focus on system-level optimization.
At NHanced, we are uniquely positioned at the intersection of these trends, helping clients navigate the technical, manufacturing, and strategic challenges of next-generation heterogeneous integration.
