Taiwanese tech giant TSMC held a ceremony on Thursday as the company kicked off its mass production of 3nm chips in southern Taiwan. The ceremony is for TSMC's new foundry, Fab 18, in Tainan.
TSMC is the world's largest contract chipmaker. TSMC head Mark Liu (劉德音) says Fab 18 will expand 3nm and 5nm chip production, creating over 10,000 job opportunities. He says the new 3nm chips will create an end-product market value of NT$1.5 trillion in five years.
The plant opening comes as some have accused the company of pushing efforts to remove Taiwan from semiconductor supply chains.
TSMC heavily invested in the United States this past year. The company sent a large number of engineers to support its newly-built Arizona factory, which prompted fears that Taiwan may lose its competitive advantage in microchip manufacturing.
Economics Minister Wang Mei-hua (王美花) says any efforts to remove Taiwan from international semiconductor supply chains are impossible. She says TSMC will always have its roots in Taiwan. Wang says the company relies on Taiwan's irreplaceable culture and comprehensive supply chain. She adds the company is successful only because it is supported by countless local manufacturers.
Wang says in addition to expanding the supply chain, Taiwan should collaborate with other countries to bring more semiconductors produced in Taiwan to the world. She says this will allow Taiwan to find its place on the international stage.