ASML said on Wednesday that some of its customers are already expressing interest in placing orders for its semiconductor-making tools as far out as 2029 and 2030, as the Dutch group reported third-quarter profit well ahead of expectations.

The comments are likely to reassure investors who have been trying to gauge the longer-term demand picture for ASML's lithography machines. "Our customers continue to increase their short- and medium-term equipment demand forecasts with us, driven primarily by their views on the size and duration of AI-related investments," chief executive Christophe Fouquet said in a press release. "In light of their demand visibility, some customers are expressing an interest in placing orders with us for 2029 and even 2030."

ASML is the only company in the world that produces extreme ultraviolet lithography machines, the key tool used by firms such as TSMC to manufacture the most advanced semiconductors. That position makes its results a closely watched barometer of AI-related chip demand.

Fouquet said supply currently planned for 2027 and 2028 would not fully meet customer demand, and that ASML was "investigating ways" to lift capacity for 2028 beyond the 30% increase it had previously flagged. During the quarter, Samsung and TSMC, the two largest chipmakers in the world, committed to using ASML's High NA EUV machines, the company's next-generation tool that analysts regard as central to its future growth.

The firm also narrowed its full-year revenue forecast, saying it now expects net sales of between 44 billion euros and 45 billion euros (roughly $49.3 billion to $50.4 billion). The previous lower end of the range had been 43 billion euros. For the fourth quarter, ASML guided to net sales of between 14.2 billion euros and 15.2 billion euros, with the top of that range sitting above consensus estimates of 14.2 billion euros.

For the third quarter, net sales came in at 11.66 billion euros against expectations of 11.72 billion euros, while net profit reached 4.96 billion euros, comfortably ahead of the 4.1 billion euros forecast.

The numbers add to a strong run for the company. In July, ASML raised its sales and gross margin guidance for the year on the back of continued demand for its tools, and its shares have climbed 56% so far this year. For now, the order interest stretching towards the end of the decade offers investors a rare glimpse of how long the current AI-driven buying cycle might last.