London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Aug 14, 2025

Biden to visit Taiwan's TSMC chip plant in Arizona, hail supply chain fixes

Biden to visit Taiwan's TSMC chip plant in Arizona, hail supply chain fixes

Taiwanese chipmaker TSMC (2330.TW) on Tuesday said it would more than triple its planned investment at its new Arizona plant to $40 billion, among the largest foreign investments in U.S. history, as President Joe Biden visited and hailed the project.
The expanded investment is a big win for Biden after supply chain issues disrupted the U.S. economy early in his presidency.

"American manufacturing is back, folks," Biden said in a speech against the backdrop of the new factory draped with an American flag and a large banner reading "A Future Made in America Phoenix, AZ."

Biden's recent trip to Asia convinced him the United States is in a better position to lead the world economy in the years ahead "if we keep our focus," he said.

Mark Liu, chairman of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co Ltd, known as TSMC, estimated annual revenue of $10 billion when the two planned chip fabrication plants open, adding that customers would have annual sales of $40 billion from products using chips made there.

Apple Inc (AAPL.O), Nvidia Corp (NVDA.O) and Advanced Micro Devices Inc (AMD.O), all major TSMC customers, said they expected their chips to be made in the new plants.

"We work with TSMC to manufacture the chips that help power our products all over the world. And we look forward to expanding this work in the years to come as TSMC forms new and deeper roots in America," Apple CEO Tim Cook said in a speech.

Also joining Biden at the facility's opening ceremony was TSMC founder Morris Chang, chipmaker Micron Technology Inc (MU.O) CEO Sanjay Mehrotra and Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, among others.

The plant, scheduled to be operational in 2024, will make a more advanced chip than initially announced.

TSMC's Taipei-listed shares were flat in early trade on Wednesday following the announcement, tracking the broader market (.TWII).

TSMC, the world's largest contract chipmaker, is a leading supplier to major U.S. hardware manufacturers. Its $40 billion funding for the two facilities is the company's largest investment outside of Taiwan.

"Bringing TSMC's investment to the United States is a masterstroke and a game-changing development for the industry," Nvidia's Huang said in remarks prepared for Tuesday's event.

TSMC's expanded investment in Arizona is the latest in a string of major investments announced by chipmakers since the CHIPS and Science Act passed this summer. These include International Business Machines Corp (IBM.N), Micron Technology Inc (MU.O) and Wolfspeed Inc (WOLF.N).

TSMC said it would build a second facility nearby to produce so-called "3 nanometer" chips by 2026, the most advanced currently in production.

TSMC also said it was planning to build an industrial water reclamation plant. Chip making is a water-intensive process, and Arizona, which is largely desert, is increasingly struggling with water shortages.

TSMC's Liu said its Phoenix factories are expected to create 13,000 high-tech jobs, including 4,500 under TSMC and the rest filled by suppliers.

Biden has sought to boost semiconductor production after the pandemic caused supply chain problems that led to shortages of chips for vehicles and many other items.

U.S. semiconductor production accounts for just 12% of the global total, down from 37% two decades ago, said a White House report on supply chain problems last year.

Taiwan's dominant position as a maker of chips used in technology from cellphones and cars to fighter jets has sparked concerns of over-reliance on the island, especially as China ramps up military pressure to assert its sovereignty claims.

China claims Taiwan as its territory but the democratically elected government in Taipei rejects Beijing's sovereignty claims.

The $52.7 billion Chips and Science Act, signed into law by Biden in August, is aimed at preventing a resurgence of supply chain woes.

Biden's trip to Arizona marks "a significant milestone that TSMC is reaching in bringing the most advanced semiconductor manufacturing back to the U.S.," said Brian Deese, director of the White House National Economic Council.

Biden's victory in Arizona in the 2020 presidential election helped catapult him to the White House. Republican Donald Trump had won the state in 2016.

Biden has said he intends to seek a second four-year term in 2024.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Iranian Protection Offers Chinese Vehicle Shipments a Cost Advantage over Japanese and Korean Makers
UK has added India to a list of countries whose nationals, convicted of crimes, will face immediate deportation without the option to appeal from within the UK
Southwest Airlines Apologizes After 'Accidentally Forgetting' Two Blind Passengers at New Orleans Airport and Faces Criticism Over Poor Service for Passengers with Disabilities
Russian Forces Advance on Donetsk Front, Cutting Key Supply Routes Near Pokrovsk
It’s Not the Algorithm: New Study Claims Social Networks Are Fundamentally Broken
Sixty-Year-Old Claims: “My Biological Age Is Twenty-One.” Want the Same? Remember the Name Spermidine
Saudi Arabia accelerates renewables to curb domestic oil use
U.S. Investigation Reports No Russian Interference in Romanian Election First Round
Oasis Reunion Tour Linked to Temporary Rise in UK Inflation
Musk Alleges Apple Favors OpenAI in App Store Rankings
Denmark Revives EU ‘Chat Control’ Proposal for Encrypted Message Scanning
US Teen Pilot Reaches Deal to Leave Chile After Unauthorized Antarctic Landing
Trump considers lawsuit against Powell over Fed renovation costs
Trump Criticizes Goldman Sachs Over Tariff Cost Forecasts
Perplexity makes unsolicited $34.5 billion all-cash offer for Google’s Chrome browser
Kodak warns of liquidity crisis as debt obligations loom
Cristiano Ronaldo and Georgina Rodríguez announce engagement
Taylor Swift announces 12th studio album on Travis Kelce’s podcast after high-profile year together
South Korean court orders arrest of former First Lady Kim Keon Hee on bribery and corruption allegations
Asia-Pacific dominates world’s busiest flight routes, with South Korea’s Jeju–Seoul corridor leading global rankings
Private Welsh island with 19th-century fort listed for sale at over £3 million
JD Vance to meet Tory MP Robert Jenrick and Reform’s Nigel Farage on UK visit
Trump and Putin Meeting: Focus on Listening and Communication
Instagram Released a New Feature – and Sent Users Into a Panic
China Accuses: Nvidia Chips Are U.S. Espionage Tools
Mercedes’ CEO Is Killing Germany’s Auto Legacy
Trump Proposes Land Concessions to End Ukraine War
New Road Safety Measures Proposed in the UK: Focus on Eye Tests and Stricter Drink-Driving Limits
Viktor Orbán Criticizes EU's Financial Support for Ukraine Amid Economic Concerns
South Korea's Military Shrinks by 20% Amid Declining Birthrate
US Postal Service Targets Unregulated Vape Distributors in Crackdown
Duluth International Airport Running on Tech Older Than Your Grandmother's Vinyl Player
RFK Jr. Announces HHS Investigation into Big Pharma Incentives to Doctors
Australia to Recognize the State of Palestine at UN Assembly
The Collapse of the Programmer Dream: AI Experts Now the Real High-Earners
Security flaws in a carmaker’s web portal let one hacker remotely unlock cars from anywhere
Street justice isn’t pretty but how else do you deal with this kind of insanity? Sometimes someone needs to standup and say something
Armenia and Azerbaijan sign U.S.-brokered accord at White House outlining transit link via southern Armenia
Barcelona Resolves Captaincy Issue with Marc-André ter Stegen
US Justice Department Seeks Release of Epstein and Maxwell Grand Jury Exhibits Amid Legal and Victim Challenges
Trump Urges Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan to Resign Over Alleged Chinese Business Ties
Scotland’s First Minister Meets Trump Amid Visit Highlighting Whisky Tariffs, Gaza Crisis and Heritage Links
Trump Administration Increases Reward for Arrest of Venezuelan President Maduro to Fifty Million Dollars
Armenia and Azerbaijan to Sign US-Brokered Framework Agreement for Nakhchivan Corridor
British Labour Government Utilizes Counter-Terrorism Tools for Social Media Monitoring Against Legitimate Critics
OpenAI Launches GPT‑5, Its Most Advanced AI Model Yet
Embarrassment in Britain: Homelessness Minister Evicted Tenants and Forced to Resign
President Trump nominated Stephen Miran, his top economic adviser and a critic of the Federal Reserve, to temporarily fill an open Fed seat
The AI-Powered Education Revolution: Market Potential and Transformative Impact
Chikungunya Virus Outbreak in Southern China: Over 7,000 Hospitalized
×