Taiwan’s semiconductor ecosystem is “irreplaceable,” even though the US-China tech dispute might escalate, a National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) executive said yesterday, adding the council has proposed a record-high annual budget of NT$159.6 billion for next year to bolster the nation’s technological development.
Taiwan’s semiconductor industry ecosystem, which was first developed about 40 years ago, is “irreplaceable and not easy to replicate,” said NSTC Deputy Minister Su Chen-kang (蘇振綱) yesterday, who oversaw the Southern Taiwan Science Park (南部科學園區) achieve an output of more than NT$1 trillion (US$30.67 billion) for three consecutive years during his term as the science park’s director-general.
Cutting-edge industries and influential global companies would continue to invest in Taiwan and the nation’s science parks would continue to expand to meet the substantial industrial needs, he said.
Photo :CNA
Su told reporters that he would rather not speak on behalf of the NSTC, when asked about former US president and Republican Party presidential candidate Donald Trump’s comments that Taiwan “should pay” the US for protecting Taiwan’s chip business.
Trump’s comments have caused concerns that his victory in November’s US presidential election could exacerbate the US-China tech dispute, affecting Taiwanese vendors’ investments or restricting US vendors’ access to Taiwan.
However, Su said the Taiwanese government is dedicated to constructing an investor-friendly environment to attract global vendors to invest in new plants in the science parks and bring about benefits for the sector.
Although the semiconductor stocks plummeted yesterday, Su said that Taiwan’s comprehensive semiconductor ecosystem still has a relative advantage regarding the medium to long-term industrial development.
While Taiwan plays a key role in AI development, digital transformation and net zero transformation, NSTC would continue to reinforce its science parks to support the nation’s industries, he said, adding that the government is planning to establish overseas science parks as well.
Meanwhile, the council on Wednesday proposed a record-high annual budget of NT$159.6 billion for next year to bolster the nation’s technological development.
The NSTC made public the budget agreed by its committee (comprised of eight ministerial-level heads, academics and industry representatives), which totaled NT$159.6 billion. This represented a 15 percent rise from last year and a 1.6 percent increase from this year.
NSTC Minister Wu Cheng-wen (吳誠文) said the budget is intended to implement what President William Lai (賴清德) envisioned in his inaugural speech, namely transforming Taiwan into an artificial intelligence island.
Wu said that helping industries make digital and net-zero transitions, balancing the country’s development, strengthening communication resilience and developing smart medical services are among the focuses of the AI-centered plan.
“The aim is to solve social problems and provide social needs with new technologies, based on Taiwan’s comparative advantages in semiconductor and information and communication technologies,” NSTC Office of Science and Technology Policy Executive Secretary Yang Chia-lin (楊佳玲) said.
In addition to the “five trusted industry sectors” underlined by Lai — semiconductors, AI, military, security and surveillance, and next-generation communications (6G and communication satellites) — Yang said that other areas that would receive heavy investment include net-zero technologies, small and medium-sized enterprises and startups, and smart health.
The rough budget allocation — for certain key sectors — is NT$20 billion for semiconductors, NT$10 billion for AI, NT$9 billion for space and communications, and about NT$12 billion for net-zero technologies, Yang said, adding that these figures do not include investment in foundational research conducted by academia.
The budget proposal still has to be approved by the Executive Yuan.
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