Founder of TSMC: Semiconductor no longer globalized

TSMC, the leader in wafer foundry, held a sports meeting yesterday. Founder bluntly stated that under the geopolitical trend, TSMC's future competitive environment will definitely not be easier than in the past few years, and it will face more challenges. The globalization of the semiconductor industry and free trade are no longer there, but we believe TSMC should be able to overcome it.

Zhang Zhongmou recalled that when he participated in the 2019 Games, the technology war between the United States and China began to spread. At that time, he warned that TSMC would become a battleground for global geopolitical strategists. Yesterday, he mentioned the prophecy at that time and said, "Over the past four years, it has indeed confirmed my words.

In terms of semiconductors, Zhang Zhongmou believes that there is no longer globalization or free trade in semiconductors. The most important thing now is national security, and every country is worried about national security. TSMC has become a company that everyone needs; From a competitive perspective, other companies will use geopolitical advantages to defeat TSMC, so TSMC's challenges in the coming years may be more severe than in the past.

Zhang Zhongmou took the United States from 1955 to 1972 as an example, and at that time, the investment environment in the United States was as good as in Taiwan now. But with environmental changes, it has been replaced by countries such as Taiwan and Asia.

The media is asking, many countries are competing to develop their semiconductor industry. Based on their experience, which country has the better chance of success?

Zhang Zhongmou said that based on his experience and observations, both Japan and Singapore are suitable for building wafer factories, but Japan is more suitable than Singapore.

Zhang Zhongmou takes as an example when he was in charge of semiconductor business at Deyi 53 years ago. At that time, Deyi decided to build a testing plant in Kyushu, Japan. Later on, this plant operated quite well, with abundant land and water resources in Kyushu. The entire Japanese work culture was also very diligent, and Japan had a high chance of success. Although Singapore is an ideal place, it is too small and lacks resources.

Zhang Zhongmou believes that the advantage of Taiwan's semiconductor manufacturing lies in the diligence and hard work of engineers. He gave an example to his American friends, who found the story of TSMC employees rushing to the company in the middle of the night to solve problems incredible.

However, he believes that although the United States has lost a significant portion of its manufacturing advantages, most companies are upgrading to semiconductor design, and these design companies do not need to spend much capital expenditure. These companies include Pfizer, Apple, and now even Microsoft and Google are starting to design their own chips.

Zhang Zhongmou believes that although Taiwan has advantages now, it may not be like this in 20 to 30 years, which is related to the development of national policies. As for who will rise up in the future to replace it? Zhang Zhongmou said, "Maybe it's India, Vietnam, Indonesia, but who knows