Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s largest contract chipmaker, has been listed as among the “100 Most Influential Companies” this year by Time magazine.
In releasing the list on Thursday, Time said that it highlights “businesses making an extraordinary impact around the world.”
The companies were categorized into five groups: pioneers, leaders, innovators, titans and disruptors.
Photo: Ann Wang, Reuters
Classifying TSMC as a titan, Time described the company as the “brain” behind everything from smartphones to data centers.
“Surging demand for its cutting-edge chips, which are optimized for tasks like machine learning and neural networks, helped TSMC beat analyst estimates in the first quarter of 2025,” the magazine said.
However, those chips place TSMC at the heart of the trade dispute between the US and China, making it “a focal point of geopolitical tension over [artificial intelligence’s] AI’s future,” Time said.
Other companies in the titan category included Berkshire Hathaway, led by chairman and chief executive officer Warren Buffett, streaming giant Netflix, and tech conglomerates Meta and Amazon.
ASML, a Dutch company that supplies photolithography systems to the semiconductor industry, was listed under the pioneer category.
US AI chip leader Nvidia and South Korean conglomerate Samsung Electronics were notably absent from this year’s Time list.
The list was compiled based on factors such as qualities, impact, innovation, ambition and success, after receiving suggestions and applications from various sectors, as well as input from the magazine’s contributors and correspondents around the world, the magazine said.
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