TSMC was founded by Morris Chang.
Morris Chang established Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company in 1987 after working for decades in the semiconductor industry, including senior roles at Texas Instruments. TSMC pioneered the dedicated semiconductor foundry model, manufacturing chips designed by other companies rather than competing directly with customers through its own branded processors.
That model allowed specialist chip designers to avoid the enormous cost of building and operating their own fabrication plants. TSMC became a crucial manufacturing partner for companies producing advanced processors for smartphones, computers, graphics, and artificial intelligence.
TSMC is formally known as Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited. Its production facilities are primarily in Taiwan, and its advanced manufacturing capabilities have made it strategically important to the global electronics industry and a frequent member of the world’s largest companies by market capitalization.