In the wake of TSMC announcing that it is making a $100 billion investment in the U.S., to expand its current $65-billion Arizona campus, some critics assert that the company “has become USMC,” and is an “example of the sitting Democratic Progress Party (DPP) selling out Taiwan.” The DPP is the current ruling party on the island nation, and it’s under this government that the company received the go-signal to make 2nm chips abroad. According to the Global Times, TSMC’s $100 billion announcement will largely cater to America’s strategic needs while negatively impacting Taiwan’s economy.
“The Taiwan chipmaker’s development trajectory and investment direction suggest it’s highly likely that TSMC will be gradually dismantled and absorbed by the U.S.,” said Professor Zhu Songling from the Beijing Union University. “At the core of this strategy lies America’s ambition for technological dominance, trying to gain control over key chip manufacturers and reduce reliance on the Asian supply chain.”
While it’s largely true that the U.S. wants TSMC and other chip manufacturers to build facilities within its borders, it’s unlikely that TSMC’s move will cause the company and Taiwan to lose international strategic value. For one, it’s reported that despite the massive investment, the company’s American expansion will only account for 5–7 percent of its total output. And even if TSMC builds manufacturing capacity in the U.S., it’s unlikely that those factories will be part-and-parceled to American institutions. This is unlike Intel, whose foundry and chip design wings are being considered for sale to TSMC and Broadcom.
This isn’t the first time that Taiwan has been accused of giving away its semiconductor industry to the U.S. Chinese authorities previously said this just last month, accusing the DPP of selling out to the West in exchange for support for independence. Nevertheless, this investment is unlikely to result in TSMC’s dismantling. Instead, it would likely give it an advantage in the U.S. market and could even make it stronger globally.
We can look at the Japanese carmakers during the 1980s as a parallel example. When Washington put restrictions on Japanese auto imports, carmakers like Toyota and Honda put up factories within the U.S., which helped them become some of the leading car brands across the globe. The same thing could potentially happen to the semiconductor industry, with TSMC gaining an advantage within the U.S. market due to its proximity. However, only time will tell if this will come to pass in the semiconductor business.
