Toto's journey from Washlet ad campaigns to semiconductor materials speaks to the idea that AI is reshaping how investors think about supply chains. It's not just Nvidia and AMD; it's the materials and components that enable chip production. In Japan, you're seeing this theme elsewhere, too; other traditional manufacturers, from seasoning companies like Ajinomoto ( making materials for chip substrates ) to cosmetics companies producing wafer cleaning agents , are being reevaluated through the AI lens. Let's hope these companies don't forget their roots lest the consequences of an AI market crash take out our toilet vendors, too.
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Zak is a freelance contributor to Tom's Hardware with decades of PC benchmarking experience who has also written for HotHardware and The Tech Report. A modern-day Renaissance man, he may not be an expert on anything, but he knows just a little about nearly everything. ","collapsible":{"enabled":true,"maxHeight":250,"readMoreText":"Read more","readLessText":"Read less"}}), "https://slice.vanilla.futurecdn.net/13-4-16/js/authorBio.js"); } else { console.error('%c FTE ','background: #9306F9; color: #ffffff','no lazy slice hydration function available'); } Zak Killian Contributor Zak is a freelance contributor to Tom's Hardware with decades of PC benchmarking experience who has also written for HotHardware and The Tech Report. A modern-day Renaissance man, he may not be an expert on anything, but he knows just a little about nearly everything.
edzieba Palliser is pushing Toto to do a better job explaining this segment to the market, streamline capital allocation, and use its ~¥76 billion ($496 million US) net cash more strategically, including a potential expansion of its ceramics business ahead of the competition. Palliser needs to screw his head on correctly then. Toto's advanced ceramics wing: 1) Supplies far more than just the semiconductor fab industry 2) For semiconducto fab sales specifically, scales with fab manufacture , not RAM demand (let alone RAM spot pricing) For RAM spot pricing to have any effect on ceramics sales, first: 1) RAM manufacturers must be willing to build up long-term fab capacity, under the assumption the AI bubble is not a bubble. This has thus far not been the case, and scaling has followed pre-bubble investment plans (not that manufacturers have ben above republishing the same plans again to take advantage of the hype) 2) Fab equipment manufacturers must then be actually able to scale up production above current levels. This has also proven not to be the case, as ASML's production volumes have remained fairly steady despite demand, because the damned things are just as hard to make regardless of how many bundles of dollar bills are waved at them. 3) Fab equipment manufacturers will actually have to be able to ship those in the near-term for that to turn into sales for Toto (or other ceramics manufacturers). With China having the largest fab buildup, and being largely cut out of fab equipment sales by US sanctions, that volume simply may not be there. Reply
Key considerations
- Investor positioning can change fast
- Volatility remains possible near catalysts
- Macro rates and liquidity can dominate flows
Reference reading
- https://www.tomshardware.com/tech-industry/artificial-intelligence/SPONSORED_LINK_URL
- https://www.tomshardware.com/tech-industry/artificial-intelligence/japanese-toilet-maker-the-most-undervalued-and-overlooked-ai-memory-beneficiary-investors-claim-shares-up-nearly-40-percent-in-first-two-months-of-2026#main
- https://www.tomshardware.com
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Informational only. No financial advice. Do your own research.