TSMC is the world's largest contract chip manufacturer by revenue and a major mega-cap semiconductor company.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, commonly called TSMC, specializes in manufacturing chips designed by other companies. This business model is known as a foundry model: customers create chip designs, while TSMC produces them in advanced fabrication plants.
TSMC was founded in 1987 by Morris Chang in Taiwan. Its manufacturing expertise and process technology made it a critical supplier for companies designing processors for smartphones, computers, graphics systems, and artificial-intelligence applications.
TSMC is often confused with a chip designer such as Nvidia or a vertically integrated manufacturer such as Intel. Nvidia designs important chips but outsources much of its manufacturing, while TSMC focuses on fabrication. Its market value is therefore closely linked to semiconductor demand, technology leadership, and capital-intensive factory expansion.