#Gobbler's always out over his skis hoping to land a wild punch. You're such easy pickings. We were fleeced before you were even in diapers, spud.
Now run along sonny................
Before Taiwan became a high-tech powerhouse, its economy relied on agriculture and low-cost manufacturing. In the late 1960s and early 1970s, the government, led by the Ministry of Economic Affairs, shifted toward developing more advanced industries. In 1973, the Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI) was founded to support industrial innovation, especially in technology fields like semiconductors. ITRI played a key role in researching new technologies and transferring this knowledge to local firms. For example, they secured partnerships with foreign companies, allowing Taiwan to access critical semiconductor manufacturing technologies.
At the same time, the government encouraged foreign investment by creating science parks, offering tax incentives, and training engineers. Hsinchu Science Park, established in 1980 and modeled after California's Silicon Valley, became a hub where local and foreign tech companies thrived. The establishment of TSMC in 1987 was a turning point for Taiwan's semiconductor industry. Led by Morris Chang, a former Texas Instruments executive, TSMC pioneered the pure-play foundry model. This model focused solely on manufacturing chips for other companies, rather than designing and manufacturing its own. This allowed fabless companies, which design chips but don't manufacture them, to thrive without the cost of building semiconductor plants.
While TSMC became the most well-known, other companies like United Microelectronics Corporation (UMC) and MediaTek also played key roles. UMC, founded in 1980, was Taiwan's first semiconductor company and eventually followed TSMC's foundry model. MediaTek, established in 1997, focuses on chip design and has become a major player in mobile communications. ASE Technology, founded in 1984, specializes in semiconductor packaging and testing, further strengthening Taiwan's role in the global supply chain.
American companies like RCA, Texas Instruments, and General Instruments had already set up factories in Taiwan in the 1960s and 1970s, attracted by cheap labor. Many Taiwanese engineers trained in the U.S. returned to Taiwan, bringing with them technical expertise and business models that fueled the country's growth in high-tech industries. By the late 1980s, Taiwan's semiconductor industry had gained global recognition, with TSMC becoming the go-to foundry for companies around the world. TSMC's investment in advanced technology, like lithography and process nodes, helped it stay ahead of competitors.
