Semiconductor industry in Taiwan

[3] TSMC and United Microelectronics Corporation (UMC) are the two largest contract chipmakers in the world,[4] while MediaTek is the fourth-largest fabless semiconductor company globally.

In July 2020 TSMC signed a 20-year deal with Ørsted to buy the entire production of two offshore wind farms under development off Taiwan's west coast.

[24] Due to its significant position in both the American and Chinese tech industry supply chains, Taiwan has been enmeshed in the technological front of the China–United States trade war and the larger geopolitical conflict between the two powers.

In response Taiwanese chipmakers Alchip and TSMC suspended new orders from Chinese supercomputing company Tianjin Phytium Information Technology.

"[32] In 2022 Matthew Pottinger challenged the existence of a Silicon Shield arguing that China does not behave in ways which appear rational to audiences in democratic countries.

Through policy efforts such as the CHIPS and Science Act, the United States and Taiwanese governments have taken steps to bolster TSMC's manufacturing capability on U.S.

[34] Such policy efforts were put in place after geopolitical tensions between the United States and China demonstrated a potential weak point in the nation's reliance on foreign manufacturing.

In April 2024, the United States Department of Commerce provided TSMC Arizona with a grant for a total of $6.6 billion in funding under the CHIPS and Science Act.

[36] Additionally, the two countries are investing in joint research initiatives and workforce development programs to provide a steady pipeline of skilled workers for the semiconductor industry.

[36] TSMC's expansion into the United States has also been met with significant challenges, particularly in its Arizona plant, facing a 1-year delay on its planned operating date.