Ajinomoto has spent well over a century supplying monosodium glutamate (MSG), a chemical that gives food an umami kick(鲜味刺激). Now another of the Japanese seasoning giant’s products is whetting investors’ appetites(激起投资者的兴趣). Ajinomoto Build-up Film (ABF) is a material used to insulate(绝缘) artificial-intelligence processors from circuit boards. It was originally made from by-products of MSG manufacturing. Ajinomoto controls more than 95% of the market. Booming demand for AI chips has made the film scarce(稀缺的), pushing Ajinomoto’s share price up by 65% since the start of the year, around three times the gain in Japan’s benchmark(基准) Nikkei index.
味之素（Ajinomoto）一个多世纪以来一直供应谷氨酸钠（MSG），即味精，这种化学物质能给食物带来鲜味。如今，这家日本调味品巨头的另一种产品正在激起投资者的兴趣。Ajinomoto Build-up Film（ABF）是一种用于将人工智能处理器与电路板绝缘的材料，最初是从味精生产的副产品中提取的。味之素控制着该市场95%以上的份额。对AI芯片的旺盛需求使得这种薄膜变得稀缺，自今年年初以来，味之素的股价上涨了65%，大约是日本基准日经指数涨幅的三倍。
Toto, another century-old Japanese firm, has lately enjoyed an equally improbable flush of prosperity(意外的繁荣). Best known as the world’s largest toilet-maker, it has found a profitable seat in the semiconductor supply chain. The firm is a leading producer of electrostatic chucks(静电吸盘): ceramic plates that hold silicon wafers firmly in place while memory chips are etched(被刻蚀). Toto’s operating profit from advanced ceramics now accounts for more than half its total.
另一家百年日本企业Toto最近也享受了同样不可思议的繁荣。它最出名的是世界上最大的马桶制造商，却在半导体供应链中找到了一席之地。该公司是静电吸盘的领先生产商：这种陶瓷板在刻蚀存储芯片时将硅晶圆牢牢固定。Toto高级陶瓷业务的营业利润现在占总利润的一半以上。
The AI frenzy(狂热) has produced obvious winners in semiconductors: American chip designers, South Korean memory-makers, Taiwanese foundries(代工厂). Japan has its equivalents, with giants such as Tokyo Electron and Advantest that make the sophisticated equipment used to fabricate(制造（芯片）) and test chips.
人工智能热潮在半导体领域产生了明显的赢家：美国芯片设计商、韩国内存制造商、台湾代工厂。日本也有相应的巨头，如东京电子和爱德万测试，它们制造用于制造和测试芯片的精密设备。