Taiwan Semi Leverages Asian Expertise and Culture for Chip Manufacturing Edge

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co TSM benefits from Asia’s skilled engineers and disciplined work culture, which are essential for advanced semiconductor production, said Konrad Young, a leading figure in Taiwan’s chip industry, the Nikkei Asia reports. 

Young emphasized that human expertise is crucial for developing a nation’s semiconductor supply chain due to the precision and knowledge required in over 1,500 manufacturing steps.

Also Read: Taiwan Semi Set to Build $11B Chip Plant in Germany, Aiming for 2027 Production Start

Young, who has worked at TSMC, HP, and other chipmakers, now nurtures new semiconductor talent at Taiwanese universities and founded the X-bridge Alliance to connect industry executives and students. 

Taiwan, accounting for 90% of the world’s advanced chipmaking capacity, has been battling worker shortages due to a decline in the birth rate. 

Nvidia Corp NVDA and Apple Inc AAPL supplier TSMC is working with top universities to set up graduate schools specializing in semiconductors to tackle the talent issue.

Young believes Taiwan’s and South Korea’s Confucian cultures are ideal for chip manufacturing. 

They emphasize precision, training, and adherence to standard procedures. He attributed Japan’s success in rebuilding its chip industry to the culture.

Despite Western creativity and innovation, Young noted that the U.S. needs to embrace Asian cultural aspects and skilled immigrants to regain its semiconductor manufacturing edge. 

He highlighted challenges in attracting top tech talent to semiconductor manufacturing in the U.S. and China due to higher-paying jobs in other industries.  According to Glassdoor, a semiconductor process engineer draws an average annual salary of $144,000 versus $145,000 for a software engineer.

China needs more experienced chip talent and high job turnover, impacting the foundation of its industry.

Prior reports indicated that TSMC, Intel Corp INTC Samsung Electronics Co were battling skyrocketing costs, a labor crisis, and weak chip supply chain efforts in Arizona, forcing suppliers to opt for overseas shipping.

TSMC plans to build fabs for 2-nanometer chips in Taiwan’s Hsinchu and Kaohsiung cities. Samsung announced a major semiconductor project near Seoul, focusing on advanced 2-nanometer chip technology.

TSMC is also considering a second plant in Kumamoto, Japan, with a potential investment of $13.5 billion. 

TSMC stock gained 57% in the last 12 months. Investors can gain exposure to the semiconductor sector via ProShares Ultra Semiconductors USD and Invesco PHLX Semiconductor ETF SOXQ.

Price Action: TSM shares were trading higher by 0.38% to $160.60 premarket at the last check on Tuesday.

Also Read: Key Nvidia, Apple Supplier TSMC To Receive $6.6B From US Government For Arizona Plant

Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.

Photo by Jack Hong via Shutterstock