Currently, TSMC only builds its most advanced chips in Taiwan. But when the most advanced US fabs are operational, they’ll be prepared to manufacture “tens of millions of leading-edge chips” to “power products like 5G/6G smartphones, autonomous vehicles, and AI datacenter servers,” the Commerce Department said in 2024.
TSMC has not confirmed the WSJ’s report but provided a statement: “We’re pleased to have an opportunity to meet with the President and look forward to discussing our shared vision for innovation and growth in the semiconductor industry, as well as exploring ways to bolster the technology sector along with our customers.”
Trump threat of semiconductor tariffs still looms
Advanced chips are regarded as critical for AI innovation, which Trump has prioritized, as well as for national security.
Without a steady supply, the US risks substantial technological and economic losses as well as potential weakening of its military.
To avert that, Trump campaigned on imposing tariffs that he claimed would drive more semiconductor manufacturing into the US, while criticizing the CHIPS Act for costing the US billions. Following through on that promise, in February, he threatened a “25 percent or more tariff” on all semiconductor imports, the WSJ reported. According to CNBC, Trump suggested those tariffs could be in effect by April 2.
“We have to have chips made in this country,” Trump said last month. “Right now, everything is made in Taiwan, practically, almost all of it, a little bit in South Korea, but everything—almost all of it is made in Taiwan. And we want it to be made—we want those companies to come to our country, in all due respect.”
While it’s unclear if Trump plans to overtly kill the CHIPS Act, his government funding cuts could trigger a future where the CHIPS Act dies with no workers left to certify that companies meet requirements for ongoing award disbursements, a semiconductor industry consultant group, Semiconductor Advisors, warned in a statement last month.
“If I were running a chip company, I would not count on CHIPS Act funding, even if I had a signed contract,” SA’s statement said.