TSMC Announces $100 Billion Investment in US Chip Manufacturing, Focusing on AI Chips

TSMC Expands US Footprint With $100B Investment, But Shares Slip on Cost Concerns

Shares in TSMC have slipped following the announcement of TSMC's major $100 billion investment into the U.S. Credit: The Washington Post, Getty Images. Shares in TSMC have slipped following the announcement of the firm's $100 billion investment into the U.S. to build five new chip plants. The investment follows years of concern from the U.S. over TSMC's dominance over the semiconductor market. The 2022 CHIPS Act, introduced by President Biden, was designed to reduce the country's reliance on advanced chips produced in China and elsewhere, incentivizing more manufacturing on domestic soil. TSMC U.S. Investment President Donald Trump announced the investment during a press conference on Monday, March 4, alongside TSMC chairman and CEO C.C. Wei. "We are going to produce many AI chips... to support AI progress," Wei said in the White House briefing. TSMC, the world's largest contract chipmaker, specializes in advanced chip packaging techniques essential for producing high-performance semiconductors that power AI technologies. The Taiwan-based firm produces chips for the world's largest companies, including Apple, Qualcomm, AMD, Nvidia, and Intel. TSMC previously pledged to pour $65 billion into new U.S. plants, bringing its total investment in the U.S. chip industry to $165 billion. "We're pleased to have an opportunity to meet with the President and look forward to discussing our shared vision for innovation and growth in the semiconductor industry, as well as exploring ways to bolster the technology sector along with our customers," TSMC said in a statement. TSMC Shares Slip Despite the investment announcement, TSMC saw its shares decrease following Trump's remarks that he would continue with his 25 percent import tariffs from Canada and Mexico. The tariffs are set to come into effect March 4. Shares in TSMC fell 1.9% in Taipei on Monday, March 3, after its American depositary receipts declined more than 7%. The losses contributed to a 1.85% decline in the electronics index and a 160-point fall in the Taiwan Stock Exchange. The Taiwan Stock Exchange's benchmark weighted index ended down 1.29% on Monday. "Today's losses largely reflected U.S. volatility caused by Trump's confirmation of the tariff plan," Concord Securities analyst Kerry Huang told Investing.com . Donald Trump's Tough Policies During the TSMC investment announcement, Trump stressed the importance of the U.S. dominating the chip market. "Semiconductors are the backbone of the 21st-century economy, and really, without the semiconductors, there is no economy powering everything from AI to automobiles to advanced manufacturing," Trump said during a White House meeting with TSMC CEO C.C. Wei. "It's a matter of economic security. It's also a matter of national security for us," he added. In February, Trump said the U.S. had to start making chips domestically as practically "everything is made in Taiwan." "... a little bit in South Korea, but everything -- almost all of it is made in Taiwan. And we want it to be made -- we want those companies to come to our country, in all due respect," Trump said. Howard Lutnick, U.S. Commerce Secretary, said TSMC's new chip plant investment was proof that Trump's tough policies were having a positive impact on America. "Now you're seeing the power of Donald Trump's presidency, because TSMC, the greatest manufacturer of chips in the world, is coming to America with $100 billion investment," Lutnick said. "And of course, that is backed by the fact that they can come here, because they can avoid paying tariffs," he added.

Chipmaker TSMC to invest $161b in US to appease Trump

Washington | Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co, the world's top producer of artificial intelligence chips, plans to invest an additional $US100 billion ($161 billion) in US plants that will boost its output on American soil and support President Donald Trump's goal of increasing domestic manufacturing. TSMC chief executive C.C. Wei joined Trump at the White House on Monday (Tuesday AEDT) to unveil the company's vision for expanding a US footprint that got its start in 2020 during the president's first term in office.

TSMC is investing $100 billion to build chip plants in the U.S.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company is investing billions of dollars to boost chip manufacturing in the U.S. The Taiwanese chipmaker plans to invest at least $100 billion in building out plants in the U.S. over the next four years, the Trump administration announced on Monday. Most of the investment will be focused in Arizona where TSMC (TSM-4.54%) is already building a chipmaking hub, President Donald Trump said during a briefing. He added that the plan includes building five cutting-edge chip fabrication facilities in Arizona that will create thousands of high-paying jobs. "The most powerful AI chips in the world will be made right here in America," Trump said. "It will be a big percentage of the chips made by this company." The announcement brings TSMC's total U.S. investment to $165 billion. "This will create hundreds of billions of dollars in economic activity and boost America's dominance in artificial intelligence and beyond," Trump said. "Semiconductors are the backbone of the 21st century economy and, really, without the semiconductors there is no economy." Trump said the U.S. "must be able to build the chips and semiconductors that we need right here in American factories with American skill and American labor." "We are going to produce many AI chips," TSMC chief executive C.C. Wei said during the announcement. "We are going to produce many tools to support the AI progress and to support the smartphone progress." In October, Bloomberg reported that the chipmaker's chip production yields -- or the number of functional chips it can produce per manufacturing process -- are about four percentage points higher at its Phoenix, Arizona site than those of comparable fabs in Taiwan. The company's first major U.S. hub includes two chipmaking facilities expected to begin production this year and in 2028. Meanwhile, TSMC was awarded up to $6.6 billion in direct funding under the Biden administration's CHIPS and Science Act in November. Some of the funding -- which will go toward its Phoenix hub -- will be used to build a third fab, the Biden administration said, adding that it will put the U.S. on track to produce 20% of the world's advanced chips by 2030. In September, independent journalist Tim Culpan reported that TSMC is manufacturing A16 chips for Apple -- one of its major customers -- at Phase 1 of its Fab 21 in Phoenix. Production volume of the A16, which was launched in the iPhone 14 Pro in 2022, "will ramp up considerably" after the second stage of TSMC's Phase 1 fab is finished, Taiwan-based Culpan said, adding that TSMC's U.S. site on track to reach its target in the first half of next year.

TSMC pledges to spend $100B on US chip facilities

Chipmaker TSMC said that it aims to invest "at least" $100 billion in chip manufacturing plants in the U.S. over the next four years as part of an effort to expand the company's network of semiconductor factories. President Donald Trump announced the news during a press conference Monday. The new cash will fund the construction of three new facilities in Arizona, C.C. Wei, chairman and CEO of TSMC, said during the briefing. "We are going to produce many AI chips [...] to support AI progress," Wei said. TSMC previously pledged to invest $65 billion in U.S.-based fabrication plants and has received up to $6.6 billion in grants from the CHIPS Act, a major Biden administration-era law that sought to boost domestic semiconductor production. The new investment brings the company's total investments in U.S. chip manufacturing to around $165 billion, Trump said during the briefing. For years, the U.S. has expressed concerns about TSMC's near-monopoly on chip manufacturing and has urged the company to relocate more of its production to the U.S. The types of advanced chip packaging in which TSMC specializes are particularly critical for AI chips, the demand for which has steeply increased correspondingly with the AI boom. Since taking office, Trump has said he would impose tariffs on foreign chip production in order to return chip manufacturing to the U.S. and threatened to end the Chips Act, which he's criticized as inadequate. Experts have warned that Trump's approach could slow -- or potentially even harm -- the U.S.' AI progress, however. Daniel Newman, CEO of the Futurum Group, a tech advisory firm, said he expects that TSMC's investment will be tied to a delay in tariffs or contingent on meeting specific requirements, which he said would be a "win" for the Administration. "As the U.S. continues to push for increased domestic manufacturing and with tariffs on the horizon, a substantial commitment from TSMC could serve as a strategic gesture of goodwill," Newman told TechCrunch via email. TSMC, the world's largest contract chip maker, already has several facilities in the U.S., including a factory in Arizona that began mass production late last year. But the company currently reserves its most sophisticated facilities for its home country of Taiwan. The U.S. considers TSMC's heavy Taiwanese presence a strategic risk because of growing threats from the mainland Chinese government. Trump and U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick have reportedly pressed TSMC to take over and manage Intel's chip plants in the U.S., which have been beset by logistical challenges. Since taking office, Trump has made several White House appearances with tech CEOs and investors to announce large U.S. infrastructure projects. In January, OpenAI and SoftBank pledged to invest as much as half a billion dollars in a domestic AI data center network. Just last week, Apple said it planned to spend more than $500 billion to expand its U.S. manufacturing footprint. The pledges have tended to be light on the details, however -- and experts have questioned their feasibility.

TSMC unveils $100 billion in new U.S. investment, joined by Trump

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., the world's top producer of AI chips, plans to invest an additional $100 billion in U.S. plants that will boost its chip output on American soil and support President Donald Trump's goal of increasing domestic manufacturing. TSMC Chief Executive Officer C.C. Wei joined Trump at the White House on Monday to unveil the company's vision for expanding a U.S. footprint that got its start in 2020 during the president's first term in office. Trump said the move means "the most powerful AI chips in the world will be made right here in America." "Without the semiconductors, there is no economy powering everything from AI to automobiles to advanced manufacturing," Trump said from the Roosevelt Room.

What TSMC's $165 billion investment in the US may mean for the chip industry

During a press conference at the White House Monday, US President Donald Trump and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), the world's largest chip manufacturer, announced that TSMC will spend $100 billion in the US in coming years to build multiple chip factories, on top of $65 billion already committed to US investment. TSMC, in a press release, billed the combined $165 billion investment as the "largest single foreign direct investment in US history." The spending is expected to focus on "advanced technologies," which could be taken to include chips for artificial intelligence, which has largely been done by TSMC in its Taiwan factories until now. TSMC serves just about every chip maker in the world, including producing the most powerful chips from Nvidia for AI, the Hopper and Blackwell GPU chips. Also: Intel touts new Xeon chip's AI power in bid to fend off AMD, ARM advances Trump said the move means "The most powerful AI chips in the world will be made right here in America," according to an account by Bloomberg. "Through this expansion, TSMC expects to create hundreds of billions of dollars in semiconductor value for AI and other cutting-edge applications," said the company. "TSMC's expanded investment is expected to support 40,000 construction jobs over the next four years and create tens of thousands of high-paying, high-tech jobs in advanced chip manufacturing and R&D," it said. TSMC already has a factory in Phoenix, Arizona, that began producing chips last year and which employs more than 3,000 people on 1,100 acres of land. The company plans to add three more US factories and an R&D center, said TSMC. TSMC's announcement comes as chip-maker Intel, which has struggled for years with declining sales and lost market share, has been seeking customers for its own factories in the US. A Reuters report Monday said that two of the world's biggest AI chip makers, Nvidia and Broadcom, both competitors to Intel, are nevertheless testing out Intel's factories to manufacture their chips, citing two unnamed sources. Also: Best of MWC 2025: The 7 most impressive products you don't want to miss The tests, the article states, suggest the companies are "moving closer to determining whether they will commit hundreds of millions of dollars' worth of manufacturing contracts to Intel." Another Intel rival, Advanced Micro Devices, is also said to be considering using Intel's factories, though it's unclear if the company has conducted tests. Intel's deals could be impacted, however, by continued delays in the company's manufacturing process, which has lagged TSMC's for years. The Reuters report notes that the so-called 18A chip manufacturing method, Intel's most cutting-edge, recently suffered yet another six-month delay, citing two unnamed sources and documents. The 18A process is "taking longer than anticipated," write Reuters's Max Cherney and Fanny Potkin. As a result, "Without the qualified fundamental building blocks of intellectual property that small and mid-size chip designers rely on, a swath of potential customers would be unable to produce chips on 18A until at least mid-2026," they write. Amidst Intel's struggles, TSMC has had discussions with the Trump administration about absorbing some of Intel's US factories, multiple news sources have reported. Broadcom has reportedly also considered purchasing some of Intel's chip-design assets.

TSMC Plans to Invest $100B in US Chip Manufacturing, CEO C.C. Wei and Trump Announce

U.S.-listed shares of TSMC fell Monday as Nvidia and other AI and chip stocks lost ground amid concerns about policies on tariffs and chip export curbs. Chipmaking giant Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSM) plans to invest $100 billion in U.S.-based chip manufacturing facilities, CEO C.C. Wei announced alongside President Trump on Monday. The company said it will build three new chip fabrication plants, two advanced packaging facilities, and a research and development center at its complex in Arizona, growing the company's total investment at the site to $165 billion. "The most powerful AI chips in the world will be made right here in America," Trump said at a televised press conference. "It's a matter of economic security, it's also a matter of national security," he added. TSMC is the world's largest semiconductor manufacturer, and expanding its U.S. production aligns with the Trump administration's stated goal of ensuring AI chips are designed and manufactured domestically. Trump reiterated Monday plans to announce tariffs of 25% or more on semiconductors and other imports on April 2. Tariffs on goods from Canada and Mexico will begin Tuesday, Trump said. The first factory at TSMC's Arizona complex began production in the fourth quarter of 2024 and was recently in talks to produce Nvidia (NVDA) Blackwell chips. Two plants currently under construction are expected to begin production in 2028 and "by the end of the decade," according to the company's website. The complex was awarded $6.6 billion in federal funding in 2024 through the CHIPS and Science Act, a 2022 piece of legislation supported by then-President Biden that earmarked over $50 billion for investment in semiconductor research and manufacturing facilities in the U.S. U.S.-listed shares of TSMC fell 4% Monday as Nvidia and other AI and chip stocks lost ground amid concerns about policies on tariffs and chip export curbs.

TSMC to invest $100B more in US chip plants - SiliconANGLE

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. today announced plans to invest an additional $100 billion in its U.S. manufacturing facilities. The investment comes on top of the $65 billion the chipmaker has already committed to building three fabs in Arizona. In a press conference with President Donald Trump, TSMC Chief Executive Officer C. C. Wei said the new investment will help the company produce artificial intelligence processors. It already makes such chips for Nvidia Corp., Advanced Micro Devices Inc. and other market players. TSMC will use the additional $100 billion investment to build three more fabs in the U.S. Additionally, it plans to open two advanced packaging facilities. Advancing packaging is the circuitry that chipmakers use to combine multiple silicon dies into a single processor. Nvidia's data center graphics cards, for example, rely on the technology to link their logic circuits with the onboard HBM memory. The chipmaker's new investment initiative will also see it establish a stateside research and development center. Its research organization is responsible for designing its chip manufacturing processes. Additionally, it develops new materials and transistor structures designed to boost processor efficiency. It's unclear what manufacturing processes will be used by the three new fabs that the company plans to build. TSMC also didn't specify which advanced packaging technologies it plans to make in the U.S. The company offers several types of packaging that each target different use cases. TSMC's first U.S. fab came online last year. It makes chips based on four-nanometer technology, which is one generation behind the company's latest three-nanometer processor. The plant is located on a campus in Phoenix, Arizona, where TSMC is also building two other chip plants. When TSMC announced plans to start making chips in the U.S., it set aside $12 billion for a single Arizona fab. The company upped that number to $40 billion in 2022 with the goal of adding a second plant. Last year, TSMC revised the plan again and announced its intention to build a third fab next to the two other plants. The latter change brought the project's total price tag to $65 billion. The third fab that TSMC is building in Arizona will start producing chips by the end of the decade. It's expected to use the company's upcoming two-nanometer manufacturing technology, which features a new transistor design known as the gate-all-around architecture. Gate-all-around transistors are easier to customize for specific use cases than current circuits and manage the flow of electricity more efficiently. With the additional $100 billion commited today, the initiative now ranks as the largest foreign direct investment in U.S. history. The fab expansion is expected to support 40,000 construction jobs over the next four years. Afterwards, TSMC expects to create tens of thousands of tech jobs across its facilities.

Trump says TSMC will invest $100 bil. to build advanced chip manufacturing facilities in US

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) CEO C. C. Wei listens as U.S. President Donald Trump announced a $100 billion U.S. investment by TSMC in the Roosevelt Room of the White House, March 3, in Washington, D.C. TSMC is the leading manufacturer of high-end semiconductor chips in the world. UPI-Yonhap U.S. President Donald Trump said Monday Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSMC) will invest $100 billion to build advanced chip producing facilities in the United States, as he is seeking to use tariffs to bolster domestic manufacturing. The announcement came after Trump accused Taiwan last month of taking U.S. chip businesses away, arguing that those businesses should come back to America. During his confirmation hearing in January, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick also claimed that TSMC "leveraged" the U.S. and took chip businesses from the U.S. "Today, Taiwan Semiconductor is announcing that they will be investing at least $100 billion in new capital in the U.S. over the next short period of time to build state-of-the-art semiconductor manufacturing facilities," he said after a meeting with TSMC CEO C.C. Wei at the White House. "I think mostly, it's going to be in Arizona, which is a great state." The $100 billion investment plan is in addition to the Taiwanese tech titan's current $65 billion investment in Arizona, the TSMC CEO said. It is to be used to build five cutting-edge fabrication facilities in the Grand Canyon State. Trump says 25% tariffs on Canada, Mexico take effect Tuesday, reciprocal tariffs will come April 2 2025-03-04 07:59 | World "Most importantly, actually, we are going to produce AI chips. We are going to produce many chips to support AI progress," the TSMC CEO said. In November, the Commerce Department under the preceding Biden administration announced it finalized a $6.6 billion government subsidy for TSMC's U.S. unit for chip production in Phoenix, Arizona. TSMC's investment move is likely to be keenly watched by South Korean chipmakers, Samsung Electronics Co. and SK hynix, as Trump has been using tariffs as a key policy tool to boost domestic manufacturing and pare down America's trade deficits. Late last year, the Commerce Department said it awarded Samsung Electronics up to $4.7 billion in direct funding to support the South Korean tech giant's chipmaking investment in central Texas, and give up to $458 million in direct funding and up to $500 million in loans to SK hynix for its investment in Indiana. (Yonhap)

TSMC Pledges $100B for US Chip Plants, Eyes 20,000 New Jobs - Decrypt

President Donald Trump announced Monday alongside TSMC CEO C.C. Wei at the White House that Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company will invest an additional $100 billion in U.S. manufacturing facilities. "This will create hundreds of billions of dollars in economic activity and boost America's dominance in artificial intelligence and beyond," Trump said during a press conference, adding the expansion would generate between 20,000-25,000 jobs. The investment builds on TSMC's existing $65 billion commitment for Arizona operations, creating what the company has tagged as "the largest single foreign direct investment in U.S. history", totaling $165 billion. Over the next four years, TSMC will build three additional chip fabrication plants beyond the three already underway, two advanced packaging facilities and a research center at the Arizona complex. TSMC began high-volume production of 4-nanometer chips at its first Arizona facility in late 2024, marking the first time chips of this grade were made on U.S. soil. The company says its Arizona fab employs over 3,000 people across its 1,100 acres of land. The facilities will produce cutting-edge chips, TSMC said, including future 2-nanometer semiconductors crucial for next-generation AI systems, mobile compute systems, crypto mining equipment, and other critical infrastructure. "Semiconductors are the backbone of the 21st century economy," Trump said. "Without the semiconductors, there is no economy, powering everything from AI to automobiles to advanced manufacturing." The move comes amid intensifying U.S.-China competition on the tech front, with the growing recognition of semiconductors as critical infrastructure for national security and economic stability. The investment also represents a strategic repositioning for TSMC, potentially insulating it from disruptions caused by U.S.-China tensions while securing its position in the critical American market. TSMC shares fell 4.2% to $172.9 on Monday, underperforming the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100's 2.2% decline to 20,425. Nvidia, meanbwhile, plummeted 8.7% to $114.06 on the day, as a broader AI sector slump, driven by tariff concerns, continued to weigh on investor confidence.

NVIDIA says TSMC's new fabs will be the 'foundational pillar' of tech supply chain in the USA

TL;DR: President Trump and TSMC announced a historic $165 billion investment to expand TSMC's U.S. operations, including three new fabs and advanced packaging plants. This expansion aims to enhance the U.S. semiconductor ecosystem, create thousands of jobs, and strengthen the domestic AI supply chain. President Trump and TSMC just announced the largest single foreign direct investment in US history, with another $100 billion to expand TSMC's operations on US soil. The ofifcial X account for NVIDIA posted: "TSMC's new fabs will be the foundational pillar of a new technology supply chain centered in the United States. NVIDIA will fully utilize TSMC's global manufacturing network to enhance our supply agility and resilience". TSMC Chairman and CEO Dr. C.C. Wei, said: "Back in 2020, thanks to President Trump's vision and support, we embarked on our journey of establishing advanced chip manufacturing in the United States. This vision is now a reality. AI is reshaping our daily lives and semiconductor technology is the foundation for new capabilities and applications. With the success of our first fab in Arizona, along with needed government support and strong customer partnerships, we intend to expand our U.S. semiconductor manufacturing investment by an additional $100 billion, bringing our total planned investment to $165 billion". The company already has $65 billion worth of investments into advanced semiconductor manufacturing operations at its fab in Phoenix, Arizona, with TSMC's total investment in teh US expected to reach $165 billion. This expansion includes plans for 3 new fabrication plants, two new advanced packaging plants, and a major R&D team center, with the company said "solidifying this project as the largest single foreign direct investment in US history". TSMC expects to create hundreds of billions of dollars of semiconductor value for AI and other cutting-edge chips, with TSMC's expanded investment expected to create 40,000 construction jobs over the next 4 years, as well as creating tens of thousands of high-paying, high-tech jobs in advanced chip manufacturing and R&D on US soil. TSMC's Arizona fab currently employs more than 3,000 people on 1,100 acres of land in Arizona. The site has been in volume production since late 2024. This expansion will play a crucial role in strengthening the U.S. semiconductor ecosystem by increasing American production of advanced semiconductor technology. It will also complete the domestic AI supply chain with TSMC's first U.S. advanced packaging investments. In the United States, in addition to its latest manufacturing site in Phoenix, TSMC operates a fab in Camas, Washington, and design service centers in Austin, Texas, and San Jose, California

President Trump announces TSMC will be investing another $100 billion into US operations

TL;DR: TSMC plans to expand its U.S. semiconductor investment by $100 billion, totaling $165 billion, with three new fabrication plants, two advanced packaging plants, and an R&D center in Arizona. This expansion aims to create 40,000 construction jobs and tens of thousands of high-tech jobs, enhancing AI and chip manufacturing capabilities. TSMC has announced its intention to expand its investment in advanced semiconductor manufacturing in the United States, pledging an additional $100 billion. The company already has $65 billion worth of investments into advanced semiconductor manufacturing operations at its fab in Phoenix, Arizona, with TSMC's total investment in teh US expected to reach $165 billion. This expansion includes plans for 3 new fabrication plants, two new advanced packaging plants, and a major R&D team center, with the company said "solidifying this project as the largest single foreign direct investment in US history". TSMC expects to create hundreds of billions of dollars of semiconductor value for AI and other cutting-edge chips, with TSMC's expanded investment expected to create 40,000 construction jobs over the next 4 years, as well as creating tens of thousands of high-paying, high-tech jobs in advanced chip manufacturing and R&D on US soil. TSMC Chairman and CEO Dr. C.C. Wei, said: "Back in 2020, thanks to President Trump's vision and support, we embarked on our journey of establishing advanced chip manufacturing in the United States. This vision is now a reality. AI is reshaping our daily lives and semiconductor technology is the foundation for new capabilities and applications. With the success of our first fab in Arizona, along with needed government support and strong customer partnerships, we intend to expand our U.S. semiconductor manufacturing investment by an additional $100 billion, bringing our total planned investment to $165 billion". TSMC might be speeding up plans to have its new 2nm and A16 process nodes made in the US earlier than previously, with original estimates pegging TSMC to mass produce 2nm in the US by as early as 2028. But the increased pressure from US tariffs might see TSMC speed up 2nm production in the US and the introduction of its next-gen A16 process for more goodwill and to meet the needs of the US market. TSMC's new fab in Arizona will be mass production 4nm chips in 2025, with the second and third semiconductor fabs expected to bring more advanced process nodes to US soil.

Taiwan President Defends TSMC's $100 Billion U.S. Chip Investment

President Lai Ching-te of Taiwan on Thursday sought to reassure his citizens that a plan by a Taiwanese chip giant to spend $100 billion in the United States would benefit the island, after the company's pledge this week raised concerns at home. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, the world's largest chip manufacturer, announced on Monday that over the next four years it would expand its operations in Arizona to make chips for artificial intelligence and other high-tech applications. President Trump has pressed Taiwan to loosen its dominance in advanced semiconductors and to move production to the United States, and he has warned of hefty tariffs if his demands are not met. But TSMC's announcement also stirred debate and misgivings in Taiwan, a democratically governed island where many people see the chip sector as a vital economic pillar and a shield against possible aggression by China, which claims it is part of its territory. The commitment from TSMC would lift its planned spending in the United States to $165 billion, more than double its previous commitments there. Mr. Lai, in a news conference in Taipei on Thursday with C.C. Wei, the chief executive of TSMC, asserted that the plan was good for TSMC, Taiwan and the United States. "We have seen every time that with each initiative by TSMC, TSMC has grown even stronger and more competitive, while also providing Taiwan's businesses with opportunities for international cooperation and contributing to Taiwan's greater strength," Mr. Lai told reporters at the presidential office. He said that Taiwan could now "confidently cross the Pacific Ocean and expand eastward to the American continent." Mr. Wei asserted that TSMC's decision was based on business considerations -- implying that the company was not bending to political pressure. "We have done a lot of analysis, and I've communicated with all our customers," he said. "It turns out that TSMC's current expansion plan in the United States is not enough to meet their demand." The company's production in Taiwan would not be hurt by its growing investment in the United States, Mr. Wei said. Not everyone in Taiwan is convinced. "When TSMC invests so much capital and takes its most advanced manufacturing processes to the United States, what has Taiwan gained in return?" Wang Hung-wei, a legislator from Taiwan's opposition Nationalist Party, said at a news conference this week. TSMC executives have previously insisted that the company would keep its most advanced factories in Taiwan. The company has invested billions growing deep roots and a network of highly specialized suppliers in Taiwan. While it has opened new factories in Japan and Arizona, its most cutting-edge chips are still made in Taiwan. Mr. Lai's government has been trying to respond to complaints from Mr. Trump that Taiwan spends too little on its own defense, has a disproportionate trade surplus with the United States, and has stolen the semiconductor business from American companies. Any rupture with Mr. Trump would be a crisis for Taiwan, which has for decades turned to the United States as its chief political and military supporter against potential threats from China. Beijing claims the island as its territory and says it could use force to take it if its leaders see no hope for peaceful unification. Last month, Mr. Lai promised to increase Taiwan's military spending to over 3 percent of its economic output, from about 2.45 percent this year. Mr. Trump and officials around him have said that Taiwan should be devoting 5 percent, or even 10 percent, of its economy to its military. Mr. Trump announced TSMC's new commitments with Mr. Wei by his side at the White House on Monday. The investment would help TSMC avoid tariffs on chips made in Taiwan, Mr. Trump said. The investment will expand TSMC's footprint in Arizona from three manufacturing plants to six, add 25,000 jobs and create a research and development center to develop production processes. Apple is the facility's largest customer. TSMC also makes chips for Nvidia, AMD, Qualcomm and Broadcom. Despite its global importance, TSMC has shied away from media attention, and its executives rarely take questions from journalists. Mr. Wei, the chief executive, suggested that he did not relish the attention. "Life has been a bit stressful lately," he said, "meeting two presidents in such a short time, and to also have to meet with friends from the media, and then answer questions."

Will TSMC escape tariffs with pledge for $100B in U.S. chip manufacturing plants?

It's been a whirlwind of news on the tariff front and Taiwan has avoided tariffs for now. But the timing of a $100 billion commitment by TSMC to build chip manufacturing plants in the U.S. may have helped. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. is the biggest chipmaker in the world, but most of its chips are made in Taiwan. Donald Trump announced in a press event on Monday that TSMC would invest at least $100 billion in chip manufacturing plants in the U.S. acroos the next four years. TSMC is already building new factories in Arizona based on a prior $65 billion pledge, and now the extra cash will fund the construction of more factories in Arizona, said C. C. Wei, chairman and CEO of TSMC, during the briefing. All of it will support the production of AI chips, he said. "I think it already helped Taiwan avoid tariffs. I have no doubt that there was a political influence in that decision," said Jim McGregor, a chip analyst at Tirias Research, in a message to GamesBeat. TSMC has also received $6.6 billion in grants from the Chips and Science Act, a bipartisan agreement reached during the Biden administration to boost domestic semiconductor production. Now TSMC is planning to invest $165 billion in chip factories in the U.S. But the big question is how many jobs it can create. TSMC has had to bring a lot of its engineers over from Taiwan to get the new chips up to speed in terms of quality. The U.S. was the birthplace of the semiconductor industry, but it doesn't necessarily have the engineering talent anymore as so much production has moved offshore. "I believe that TSMC was faced with 50-100% tariffs and had to make a choice between that and making increased US investments," said Patrick Moorhead, an analyst at Moor Insights & Strategy. "While I don't think the tariffs will be zero, they will be much lower, and I also don't think that TSMC will spend as much incrementally as is implied. " The new investment brings TSMC's total investments in the U.S. chip industry to around $165 billion, Trump said. Intel has also received more than $2 billion via the Chips and Science Act and it has pledged to invest heavily in U.S. manufacturing. But Intel has had a hard time in recent years being competitive with TSMC. Trump had threatened to bring tariffs against Taiwan earlier, but he held back when he announced tariffs on China, Mexico and Canada. Apple has also said it will invest more than $500 billion in U.S. manufacturing for its products. TSMC did not give a timeframe for the newly announced investments, but it said it would add 40,000 construction jobs over the next four years. Companies like Nvidia, AMD and Qualcomm are among TSMC's big customers.

TSMC plays its hand in Donald Trump's tariff war

"I'm a little bit nervous," admitted CC Wei, the CEO of Taiwanese chipmaker TSMC, taking the podium at the White House this week as he announced the largest foreign investment in American history. The entire chip industry has been nervous while watching President Donald Trump's tariff escalation. Trump has threatened retaliation against Taiwan for having "stolen" US business. Yet TSMC is doubling down on its US manufacturing footprint with a new $100bn commitment. What exactly is TSMC planning to build? In addition to the chip plants -- called fabs -- already on their Arizona campus, TSMC will add three more. The company will also build two advanced packaging plants and an R&D facility. The timeline, capacity, and technology capabilities of these plants is not clear, but TSMC says they will produce AI chips. Even if the new plants have a similar volume to TSMC's current facility, the US operations would still be a small share of the company's overall production, though a higher share of its advanced manufacturing. This investment cements America's position as a significant player in advanced chipmaking, behind only Taiwan and South Korea. TSMC's customers -- mostly big US chip designers like Nvidia, Apple, and AMD -- will welcome the further geographic diversification of its manufacturing operations. Yet they will also ask about the cost. TSMC has learnt efficiencies during its time in the US, but its manufacturing there is still more expensive than in Taiwan. Both TSMC and its customers may now avoid tariffs, but they will find themselves with higher manufacturing costs instead. Still this announcement poses tough questions for Samsung and Intel, the two other primary manufacturers of advanced processors, who have pitched themselves as reliable suppliers with less exposure to China-related risk. As TSMC's US footprint grows, this argument gets harder to make. Has this investment addressed America's fears of being cut off from Taiwan's chipmaking capabilities? Standing alongside Wei, Trump noted pointedly that TSMC's new plants would be built in a "very safe place". Yet even $100bn only goes so far in the capital intensive semiconductor supply chain. Products like smartphones and consumer electronics will probably remain entrenched in Taiwan and China. For AI chips, however, the new investment may represent a more significant shift. TSMC has reportedly been discussing manufacturing Nvidia's advanced Blackwell AI chips in Arizona. If the company's new facilities include its advanced packaging technology, then AI accelerators could be fully produced in the US. Other Taiwanese firms such as Foxconn are also planning new US plants to assemble these AI chips into servers, though some key inputs would still be sourced from Japan or Korea. After these new investments, the US still won't have an end-to-end AI supply chain, but it will be less dependent on production in Taiwan. What do TSMC and Taiwan get from the announcement? Relief from tariff threats, they hope. Trump warned Taiwan it could face levies of "25 per cent or 30 per cent or 50 per cent" in the future. As the industry's dominant supplier, TSMC could no doubt pass some tariff-induced price increases on to customers. But if these new plants prevent tariffs in the first place, the investment may prove to be money well spent. A second concern for TSMC is, as Trump put it, "Taiwan pretty much has a monopoly" over high-end processors. From AT&T to IBM, Microsoft to Alphabet, tangles with antitrust authorities have historically been common for tech companies with 90 per cent market share, as TSMC has in advanced chipmaking. This is another rationale for solidifying ties with an administration that has talked tough on tech antitrust. A final explanation is less about TSMC and more about Taiwan. Some in the country worry that TSMC's international expansion undermines the "silicon shield" they believe has helped to deter Chinese escalation. However, even with these new plants, the majority of TSMC's production will remain onshore. Taiwan's leaders hope that by investing in the US economy they can keep Trump invested in their security. So TSMC is betting its future on being even more deeply bound to the US.

Taiwan Semiconductor Chief Says US Expansion Not Driven By Political Pressure, But AI Boom, Warns of Supply Shortage - Taiwan Semiconductor (NYSE:TSM)

Contract chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co TSM Chairman and CEO C.C. Wei emphasized that its U.S. chip investment boost came from customer demand for its chips, which are critical for powering everything from the latest artificial intelligence systems to smartphones. The Taiwanese contract chip maker's latest $100 billion investment plan (on top of its $65 billion already committed) aims to meet surging demand from U.S. customers, the Wall Street Journal cited Wei at a press conference alongside Taiwan President Lai Ching-te at the presidential office on Thursday. Also Read: Chip Equipment Maker ASML Faces Uncertainty As US Sanctions On China Impact Demand Wei said that Taiwan Semiconductor's production lines were fully booked for 2025 and the next two years. Wei said the chipmaker will build three new chip plants, two chip-packaging facilities, and a research and development center, which will be driven by demand rather than political pressure, according to the WSJ report. However, he added that despite the $100 billion investment, its production capacity will be insufficient to meet the demand. ING's Jan Frederik Slijkerman told the WSJ that Taiwan Semiconductors U.S. investment without subsidies marked a policy win for the Trump administration. Since his presidential campaign, President Donald Trump has criticized Taiwan's near-dominance in advanced chip manufacturing and threatened tariffs on chip imports. Analysts highlighted Taiwan Semiconductor's previous acknowledgment of the higher construction and manufacturing expenses in the U.S., prompting them to retain research, design, and manufacturing in Taiwan. Despite the investment, the Taiwan government maintained that the country would continue to be the key advanced semiconductor headquarters and retain the most advanced tech in the home country. Morningstar's Phelix Lee told the WSJ that Taiwan Semiconductor would likely have to shift the burden of higher costs and expenses to the customers to maintain profitability, given the likely lower levels of U.S. government support. Wei told WSJ that the chipmaker remains committed to its target of building 11 production lines in Taiwan in 2025. IDC expects the Taiwanese contract chipmaker to command a 67% share of the global foundry market in 2025. Price Action: TSM stock traded lower by 1.81% at $172.70 at the last check on Friday. Also Read: AI Chip Leaders Nvidia, AMD, Broadcom Slide Amid Marvell Earnings and US Policy Concerns Image via Shutterstock TSMTaiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co Ltd$173.54-1.31%Stock Score Locked: Want to See it? Benzinga Rankings give you vital metrics on any stock - anytime. Reveal Full ScoreEdge RankingsMomentum84.43Growth75.68Quality97.87Value49.08Price TrendShortMediumLongOverviewMarket News and Data brought to you by Benzinga APIs

TSMC Poised to Announce $100 Billion Investment in US Plants

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. plans to invest $100 billion in chips plants in the US over the next four years, a move President Donald Trump is set to announce at the White House later Monday, according to a person familiar with the matter. TSMC is the world's leader in production of advanced semiconductors used for artificial intelligence, and the investment would help bolster Trump's pledge to make the US dominant in AI. The person who described the plans did so on condition of anonymity ahead of the announcement.

Trump announces $100 billion investment in U.S. from TSMC, calls it 'most powerful company' in world

C.C. Wei, chairman and chief executive of TSMC, at the White House on Monday.Leah Millis / Reuters Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing will pour $100 billion into bolstering chip manufacturing in the U.S., President Donald Trump announced Monday. The president called the investment a "tremendous move by the most powerful company in the world." The new capital brings TSMC's total investment in the U.S. to $165 billion and will go toward building five new fabrication facilities in Arizona. The announcement from TSMC, which supplies semiconductors to the likes of Nvidia and Apple for artificial intelligence use, supports the Trump administration's ongoing efforts to make the U.S. an artificial intelligence hub. Last month, Trump announced a multibillion-dollar AI infrastructure project with Oracle, OpenAI and Softbank. He has also made numerous calls to bring semiconductor production back to the U.S. after much of the manufacturing industry moved abroad. Advancing semiconductor production in the U.S. is a matter of economic and national security, Trump said Monday. Trump has repeatedly called out and accused Taiwan of stealing the U.S. chip manufacturing business and touted tariffs on semiconductor imports. The company's finance chief, Wendell Huang, told CNBC in January that he was confident the new White House administration would continue funding the company's U.S. ambitions. TSMC has already made strides to expand its footprint in the U.S prior to Monday's announcement. The company committed $12 billion in 2020 to build its first U.S. chip factory in Arizona, later raising that investment to $65 billion with a third factory. It has also gained U.S. government support through a $6.6 billion subsidy from the U.S. Commerce Department. A spokesperson for Nvidia told CNBC that the chipmaker "will fully utilize TSMC's global manufacturing network to enhance our supply agility and resilience."