Advanced Micro Devices Inc (AMD) has chosen to locate its new research-and-development (R&D) centers in Tainan and Kaohsiung, as part of the US chip company's NT$8.64 billion (US$270.5 million) project to advance its development of cutting-edge technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) and silicon photonics, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said yesterday.
AMD’s latest investment would help to develop Taiwan into an “AI silicon island,” the ministry said in a statement after Minister of Economic Affairs J.W. Kuo (郭智輝) met AMD representatives led by David Wang (王啟尚), senior vice president of AMD’s graphics processing unit technologies and engineering, in Taipei yesterday.
AMD did not comment on why it chose two sites rather than one. Tainan is the birthplace of AMD chief executive officer Lisa Su (蘇姿丰) and is a major manufacturing hub of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co’s (TSMC, 台積電) 3-nanometer chips for AI devices. In Kaohsiung, TSMC is building a new fab to produce next-generation 2-nanometer chips.
Photo: Ritchie B. Tongo, EPA-EFE
AMD is the latest in a series of global semiconductor companies seeking to build their R&D centers in Taiwan under the ministry’s A+ global R&D and innovation partnership program. The US chip company last month was granted a subsidy of NT$3.31 billion, about 38 percent of the company’s investment over three years.
AMD’s decision came as Taiwan has formed an extensive supply chain to provide components for the world’s AI devices, from AI chips made by TSMC to AI servers assembled by Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密), Quanta Computer Inc (廣達) and Wiwynn Corp (緯穎).
AI chip giant Nvidia Corp has set up its first AI R&D center in Taipei’s Neihu District (內湖) and is scouting sites for a second, likely in Kaohsiung.
Semiconductor equipment makers ASML Holding NV, Lam Research Corp and Applied Materials Inc previously also received grants to set up local R&D sites through the same program, the ministry said.
Kaohsiung has been working diligently to expand the local talent pool in collaboration with the nation’s prestigious schools. At the beginning of this year, National Tsing Hua University signed a memorandum of understanding with the Kaohsiung City Government to establish a branch in the city, following a similar agreement with National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University.
Based on details previously disclosed by the ministry, about 33 Taiwanese companies would take part in AMD’s R&D program, which would help to train more than 10,000 AI professionals each year for three years.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) has approved a capital budget of US$31.28 billion for production expansion to meet long-term development needs during the artificial intelligence (AI) boom. The company’s board meeting yesterday approved the capital appropriation plan for purposes such as the installation of advanced technology capacity and fab construction, the world’s largest contract chipmaker said in a statement. At an earnings conference last month, TSMC forecast that its capital expenditure for this year would be at the higher end of the US$52 billion to US$56 billion range it forecast in January in response to robust demand for 5G, AI and
NEW MARKET: The partnership opens up India to the Dutch company, which already has a strong hold in the semiconductor market of South Korea, Taiwan and China ASML Holding NV entered into a partnership agreement with Tata Electronics Pvt Ltd aimed at ramping up India’s goal to develop domestic chip-manufacturing capabilities. The Dutch company’s technology would help power Tata Electronics’ planned 300 millimeter (mm) semiconductor foundry in Gujarat, according to a joint statement from the two companies on Saturday. The signing of a memorandum of understanding coincides with a visit by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the Netherlands, which is looking to deepen bilateral relations with New Delhi. ASML, whose top customers include Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (台積電) and Samsung Electronics Co, makes lithography machines that can print
PORTFOLIO REBALANCING: The adjustments in three global equity indices reflect rising investor appetite for semiconductor and artificial intelligence-related stocks Taiwan’s weighting in major global equity indices compiled by MSCI Inc is to rise modestly following the latest quarterly review, underscoring the market’s expanding role in emerging-market portfolios, as global investors continue to favor the nation’s technology sector. Taiwan’s weighting in the MSCI Emerging Markets Index is to increase by 0.30 percentage points to 23.76 percent, after the changes take effect at the close of the May 29 session. Its weighting in the MSCI All-Country Asia ex-Japan Index is to rise 0.37 percentage points to 27.16 percent, while that in the MSCI All Country World Index is to edge up slightly to
The Hsinchu County Government’s Labor Affairs Department yesterday said that it has received a plan from cosmetics brand Taiwan Shiseido Co (台灣資生堂) detailing mass layoffs at its plant in Hukou Township (湖口). While the labor authorities did not disclose the number of employees to be laid off, Japanese news media earlier in the day reported that the closure of the company’s factory in Hukou would result in 170 employees losing their jobs. Shiseido followed the law by reporting its layoff plan, the department said, adding that authorities would closely monitor negotiations between the management and affected employees and step in if any
RSS