Hewlett-Packard Co is setting up a global research and development (R&D) center in Taiwan, and expects to churn out computer and mobile devices such as its prospective iPad-killer, the HP Slate.
The center, called the Computing Hub, will cost NT$3.6 billion (US$112.5 million) over three years and is expected to procure US$30 billion in electronics components from Taiwanese companies each year within that period, according to sources familiar with the deal.
“The center will set its focus on computer products, determining the design of HP Slate and related multi-touch applications,” sources said.
Other products in the R&D pipeline for the Computing Hub include 3D visual technologies for mobile products, while the US tech giant will work with local suppliers for special shutter glasses.
Personal cloud computing will also be a key theme for the center, where HP will develop related infrastructure and share know-how with Taiwanese contract makers, the sources said.
Kai Hsiao (蕭國坤), HP Taiwan’s procurement head, confirmed yesterday that the company has initiated a three-year program to set up an R&D center in Taiwan.
He would not comment on the specifics or amount, but said the center would play a critical role for HP’s global R&D.
“This project will put our Taiwan site in a strategic position for HP’s global R&D operations,” he said, adding that the center would be the largest R&D project in terms of investment in Taiwan’s tech industry.
He said PC, handset and server products would be the key focuses for the Computing Hub.
“Innovation will be the key to the Computing Hub. It won’t carry out R&D for middle or low-end products. The center will also join hands with Taiwan’s academia,” he said.
HP is not alone in boosting investment in Taiwan to tap into the local tech supply chain and its growing trade ties with China following the signing of the Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement (ECFA).
Another US firm, Super Micro Computer Inc, a leader in storage and server manufacturing, will also spend more than US$100 million to set up its Asia-Pacific operation center in Taiwan.
The company will recruit up to 4,000 staff members to run the center, which will include logistical, manufacturing and R&D functions.
“The company is facing high labor costs at its research site in Silicon Valley. Moving to Taiwan will help it cut costs and it could also take advantage of the ample resources of the tech supply chain here,” sources said.
Its operation center will be located in Bade (八德), Taoyuan County.
ROLLER-COASTER RIDE: More than five earthquakes ranging from magnitude 4.4 to 5.5 on the Richter scale shook eastern Taiwan in rapid succession yesterday afternoon Back-to-back weather fronts are forecast to hit Taiwan this week, resulting in rain across the nation in the coming days, the Central Weather Administration said yesterday, as it also warned residents in mountainous regions to be wary of landslides and rockfalls. As the first front approached, sporadic rainfall began in central and northern parts of Taiwan yesterday, the agency said, adding that rain is forecast to intensify in those regions today, while brief showers would also affect other parts of the nation. A second weather system is forecast to arrive on Thursday, bringing additional rain to the whole nation until Sunday, it
LANDSLIDES POSSIBLE: The agency advised the public to avoid visiting mountainous regions due to more expected aftershocks and rainfall from a series of weather fronts A series of earthquakes over the past few days were likely aftershocks of the April 3 earthquake in Hualien County, with further aftershocks to be expected for up to a year, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Based on the nation’s experience after the quake on Sept. 21, 1999, more aftershocks are possible over the next six months to a year, the agency said. A total of 103 earthquakes of magnitude 4 on the local magnitude scale or higher hit Hualien County from 5:08pm on Monday to 10:27am yesterday, with 27 of them exceeding magnitude 5. They included two, of magnitude
CONDITIONAL: The PRC imposes secret requirements that the funding it provides cannot be spent in states with diplomatic relations with Taiwan, Emma Reilly said China has been bribing UN officials to obtain “special benefits” and to block funding from countries that have diplomatic ties with Taiwan, a former UN employee told the British House of Commons on Tuesday. At a House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee hearing into “international relations within the multilateral system,” former Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) employee Emma Reilly said in a written statement that “Beijing paid bribes to the two successive Presidents of the [UN] General Assembly” during the two-year negotiation of the Sustainable Development Goals. Another way China exercises influence within the UN Secretariat is
Taiwan’s first drag queen to compete on the internationally acclaimed RuPaul’s Drag Race, Nymphia Wind (妮妃雅), was on Friday crowned the “Next Drag Superstar.” Dressed in a sparkling banana dress, Nymphia Wind swept onto the stage for the final, and stole the show. “Taiwan this is for you,” she said right after show host RuPaul announced her as the winner. “To those who feel like they don’t belong, just remember to live fearlessly and to live their truth,” she said on stage. One of the frontrunners for the past 15 episodes, the 28-year-old breezed through to the final after weeks of showcasing her unique