ASML Holding NV, the world's largest supplier of computer chipmaking equipment, announced on Wednesday that its fourth-quarter new orders significantly surpassed market expectations, driven by increased investment in AI chip production capacity by major corporations. The European company with the highest market capitalization also separately announced a plan to reduce its workforce by 1,700 positions, representing 3.8% of its total headcount, with the cuts primarily focused on management roles in the Netherlands and the United States. Chief Financial Officer Roger Dassen stated during an earnings call that this represents the company's largest-ever layoff in absolute terms, following a prolonged period of business expansion during the 2010s and 2020s. As a key industry benchmark, ASML's fourth-quarter new order bookings reached 13.2 billion euros (approximately $15.8 billion), a substantial increase from the 5.4 billion euros recorded in the previous quarter. According to data from market research firm Visible Alpha, analysts' consensus expectation for the quarter was merely 6.32 billion euros. Chief Executive Officer Christophe Fouquet said in a statement, "In recent months, numerous customers have provided a markedly more positive assessment of the mid-term market situation, primarily stemming from firmer expectations regarding the sustainability of AI-related demand." The surge in demand for AI chips has led to order performance that vastly exceeded forecasts. ASML's better-than-expected orders coincide with several of its chip manufacturing customers raising their investment plans—intensifying demand for AI logic chips and memory chips from cloud computing giants like Microsoft, Amazon, and Alphabet's Google served as a core driving factor. Mizuho Securities analyst Kevin Wang noted in an email, "Driven by AI demand, requirements for extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography equipment in both logic chips and DRAM are increasing. ASML's Q4 order performance was impressive, and the overall outlook for 2026 is positive." The Dutch company also raised its financial outlook for 2026. According to data from London Stock Exchange Group, ASML now anticipates full-year 2026 sales to be in the range of 34 billion to 39 billion euros, compared to the previous analyst consensus of 35 billion euros. The company had previously projected that 2026 sales would be flat or show growth compared to 2025, for which sales were 32.7 billion euros. Fouquet stated, "We expect 2026 to be another year of growth for ASML's business." Analysts had previously believed that amid global tightness in memory chip and AI accelerator supply, coupled with major chipmakers increasing capital expenditures to expand AI-related chip capacity, ASML would significantly benefit from growing demand from key customers like TSMC and Samsung. In an internal interview published on the company's website, Fouquet stated that ASML maintains its long-term guidance for 2030 unchanged, expecting revenue to reach 44 billion to 60 billion euros by 2030, with a gross margin maintained between 56% and 60%.