Taiwan is expected to play a major role in driving global economic growth through its central position in the integrated circuit (IC) manufacturing sector, semiconductor industry leaders said in Taipei yesterday.
Speaking at the opening ceremony of Semicon Taiwan, SEMI president and chief executive Ajit Manocha said that the industry is “counting on Taiwan to play a big role” in artificial intelligence (AI) that would drive global economic growth.
“AI enabled growth is going to be more than 50 percent of the growth that we are in for next decade,” Manocha told an audience that included Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰), foreign delegations and SEMI top executives.
Photo: Chang Chia-ming, Taipei Times
SEMI is a US-based association that promotes the global semiconductor industry.
The IC industry alone “ended last year at US$600 billion in revenue, and it took us 70 years to get there, but in the next seven to eight years, it will be US$1 trillion,” Manocha said.
After the next decade of quantum computing, the IC industry might reach US$4 trillion to US$5 trillion by 2050, he said, adding that “Taiwan plays a major role” in all of these high-tech areas.
Photo: I-Hwa Cheng, Bloomberg
Cho also spoke at the ceremony, highlighting “Taiwan’s responsibility” in the global industry.
“Taiwan and its people understand the responsibility we bear in global supply chains, and the Taiwanese government will shoulder the responsibility of making sure to improve the investment and production environments [in the nation],” Cho said.
Meanwhile, Manocha said he does not believe in the end of Moore’s Law, referring to the observation made in 1965 by Intel Corp cofounder Gordon Moore that the number of transistors in an integrated circuit doubles every two years, meaning chips get smaller.
“I think the way AI is coming into the picture, and the advanced packaging, the heterogeneous integration, the chiplets, all of which are only enhancing Moore’s law and the functionality of the chip,” Manocha said. “I think we will continue driving the growth of this industry, and all those activities are happening right here in Taiwan.”
Taiwan Semiconductor Industry Association executive director Nicky Lu (盧超群) echoed Manocha’s optimism, saying that he expects a “golden age” of at least 20 years for the IC industry as the Internet of Things sector continues to grow alongside the global rise of AI and quantum computing.
“Taiwan’s 2024 semiconductor revenue will reach US$160 billion again, more than 25 percent of worldwide revenue,” Lu said. “Mankind is setting up a global zero carbon emission target, demanding research and development breakthroughs, especially in semiconductors.”
To drive these innovations forward, “Taiwan has been working hard and in close collaboration with global partners effectively,” he said.
Lu cited Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (台積電) -— which is building fabs in the US, Japan and Germany — as an example of Taiwanese companies expanding their operations overseas.
“ASE Technology Holding Co (日月光投控) is also investing in Malaysia, Mexico and the US, and GlobalWafers Co (環球晶圓) now runs 18 facilities in nine countries,” he said.
Mary Puma, chair of the SEMI international board of directors, said Semicon Taiwan underscores Taiwan’s pivotal role in semiconductor supply chains.
“Given its strategic importance, regional cooperation is becoming increasingly critical, and the exhibition will deepen cross-border exchanges, foster innovation and strengthen partnerships,” she said.
The three-day semiconductor expo runs until tomorrow at the Taipei Nangang Exhibition Center.
Semiconductor shares in China surged yesterday after Reuters reported the US had ordered chipmaking giant Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) to halt shipments of advanced chips to Chinese customers, which investors believe could accelerate Beijing’s self-reliance efforts. TSMC yesterday started to suspend shipments of certain sophisticated chips to some Chinese clients after receiving a letter from the US Department of Commerce imposing export restrictions on those products, Reuters reported on Sunday, citing an unnamed source. The US imposed export restrictions on TSMC’s 7-nanometer or more advanced designs, Reuters reported. Investors figured that would encourage authorities to support China’s industry and bought shares
FLEXIBLE: Taiwan can develop its own ground station equipment, and has highly competitive manufacturers and suppliers with diversified production, the MOEA said The Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) yesterday disputed reports that suppliers to US-based Space Exploration Technologies Corp (SpaceX) had been asked to move production out of Taiwan. Reuters had reported on Tuesday last week that Elon Musk-owned SpaceX had asked their manufacturers to produce outside of Taiwan given geopolitical risks and that at least one Taiwanese supplier had been pushed to relocate production to Vietnam. SpaceX’s requests place a renewed focus on the contentious relationship Musk has had with Taiwan, especially after he said last year that Taiwan is an “integral part” of China, sparking sharp criticism from Taiwanese authorities. The ministry said
US President Joe Biden’s administration is racing to complete CHIPS and Science Act agreements with companies such as Intel Corp and Samsung Electronics Co, aiming to shore up one of its signature initiatives before US president-elect Donald Trump enters the White House. The US Department of Commerce has allocated more than 90 percent of the US$39 billion in grants under the act, a landmark law enacted in 2022 designed to rebuild the domestic chip industry. However, the agency has only announced one binding agreement so far. The next two months would prove critical for more than 20 companies still in the process
CHANGING JAPAN: Nvidia-powered AI services over cellular networks ‘will result in an artificial intelligence grid that runs across Japan,’ Nvidia’s Jensen Huang said Softbank Group Corp would be the first to build a supercomputer with chips using Nvidia Corp’s new Blackwell design, a demonstration of the Japanese company’s ambitions to catch up on artificial intelligence (AI). The group’s telecom unit, Softbank Corp, plans to build Japan’s most powerful AI supercomputer to support local services, it said. That computer would be based on Nvidia’s DGX B200 product, which combines computer processors with so-called AI accelerator chips. A follow-up effort will feature Grace Blackwell, a more advanced version, the company said. The announcement indicates that Softbank Group, which until early 2019 owned 4.9 percent of Nvidia, has secured a
RSS