President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday said that the government would continue efforts to push forward new major artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure projects and to support research and development (R&D) in quantum computing, silicon photonics and robotics, aiming to position Taiwan as a critical global innovation hub.
By deepening international cooperation in production, investment and R&D, the government hopes to anchor key technologies in Taiwan, help local firms expand their global presence and ensure that Taiwanese products reach markets worldwide, Lai said.
Taiwan is a trusted global partner in the semiconductor sector, and welcomes collaboration in areas such as semiconductor materials and equipment to ensure safe, resilient and sustainable industry growth, he said.
Photo: Tien Yu-hua, Taipei Times
“The semiconductor industry is highly specialized, and no single country can handle it alone,” Lai told hundreds of government officials and business leaders from home and abroad at the Semicon Network Summit in Taipei.
The summit — cohosted by the Industrial Technology Research Institute and trade group SEMI — was convened to promote high-level global dialogue, improve cooperation on AI chips and expand talent development, with the goal of building a more resilient semiconductor ecosystem.
It drew more than 600 participants from 28 countries, ahead of the opening of the Semicon Taiwan trade show today.
At the summit, Lai conferred the Medal of Economic Contribution on Akira Amari, honorary chairman of Japan’s Liberal Democratic Party’s Semiconductor Strategy Promotion Parliamentarian Alliance, and on Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) chairman and CEO C.C. Wei (魏哲家).
The award recognized Amari for promoting strategic cooperation between Taiwan’s and Japan’s semiconductor industries, and Wei for his leadership in enhancing Taiwan’s international visibility.
Meanwhile, officials from Japan, the EU and the UK voiced concern that US-proposed tariffs on foreign-made semiconductors could disrupt global supply chains, as they underscored the importance of international collaboration.
“I am very optimistic about the outlook for Taiwan’s semiconductor industry,” Japanese Deputy Representative to Taiwan Gen Kawai said on the sidelines of the summit.
“Without access to Taiwan-made semiconductors, the US AI industry would find itself in an extremely precarious position,” he said.
Compared with Taiwan’s semiconductor sector, which benefits from world-class technology and a well-developed innovation ecosystem, Japan’s industry would be more vulnerable to the impact of US tariffs, Kawai said.
“Japan’s semiconductor industry is still in the early stages of regaining its international competitiveness,” he said, adding that those efforts would be weakened by Washington’s disruptive policy.
Similarly, Peter Fatelnig, a senior EU official posted to Japan, said industries were grappling with “an unprecedented level of uncertainty” that could drive up costs, delay projects and disrupt investment decisions.
Fatelnig called for deeper discussions on “friend-shoring” — the practice of concentrating supply chain networks in politically and economically allied countries — as part of efforts to stabilize the industry.
British Representative to Taiwan Ruth Bradley-Jones said that building a resilient semiconductor supply chain requires trusted international collaboration, alongside policies that enhance industry security and efficiency.
Such collaboration includes promoting joint R&D, policy exchanges and commercial partnerships, she said, adding that Taiwan and the UK have been working together to maximize their “complementary strengths.”
“For us, it’s about pushing the UK design, innovation pace and working with Taiwan on optimizing manufacturing,” she added.
RESPONSE: The transit sends a message that China’s alignment with other countries would not deter the West from defending freedom of navigation, an academic said Canadian frigate the Ville de Quebec and Australian guided-missile destroyer the Brisbane transited the Taiwan Strait yesterday morning, the first time the two nations have conducted a joint freedom of navigation operation. The Canadian and Australian militaries did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The Ministry of National Defense declined to confirm the passage, saying only that Taiwan’s armed forces had deployed surveillance and reconnaissance assets, along with warships and combat aircraft, to safeguard security across the Strait. The two vessels were observed transiting northward along the eastern side of the Taiwan Strait’s median line, with Japan being their most likely destination,
‘NOT ALONE’: A Taiwan Strait war would disrupt global trade routes, and could spark a worldwide crisis, so a powerful US presence is needed as a deterrence, a US senator said US Senator Deb Fischer on Thursday urged her colleagues in the US Congress to deepen Washington’s cooperation with Taiwan and other Indo-Pacific partners to contain the global security threat from China. Fischer and other lawmakers recently returned from an official trip to the Indo-Pacific region, where they toured US military bases in Hawaii and Guam, and visited leaders, including President William Lai (賴清德). The trip underscored the reality that the world is undergoing turmoil, and maintaining a free and open Indo-Pacific region is crucial to the security interests of the US and its partners, she said. Her visit to Taiwan demonstrated ways the
GLOBAL ISSUE: If China annexes Taiwan, ‘it will not stop its expansion there, as it only becomes stronger and has more force to expand further,’ the president said China’s military and diplomatic expansion is not a sole issue for Taiwan, but one that risks world peace, President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday, adding that Taiwan would stand with the alliance of democratic countries to preserve peace through deterrence. Lai made the remark in an exclusive interview with the Chinese-language Liberty Times (sister paper of the Taipei Times). “China is strategically pushing forward to change the international order,” Lai said, adding that China established the Asia Infrastructure Investment Bank, launched the Belt and Road Initiative, and pushed for yuan internationalization, because it wants to replace the democratic rules-based international
WAR’S END ANNIVERSARY: ‘Taiwan does not believe in commemorating peace by holding guns,’ the president said on social media after attending a morning ceremony Countries should uphold peace, and promote freedom and democracy, President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday as Taiwan marked 80 years since the end of World War II and the Second Sino-Japanese War. Lai, Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) and other top officials in the morning attended a ceremony at the National Revolutionary Martyrs’ Shrine in Taipei’s Zhongshan District (中山) to honor those who sacrificed their lives in major battles. “Taiwanese are peace-loving. Taiwan does not believe in commemorating peace by holding guns,” Lai wrote on Facebook afterward, apparently to highlight the contrast with the military parade in Beijing marking the same anniversary. “We
RSS