TSMC operates the world's largest dedicated semiconductor foundry and became one of the highest-valued companies.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, commonly called TSMC, manufactures chips designed by other companies. This contract-manufacturing model lets customers such as NVIDIA, Apple, and AMD design processors without owning equivalent fabrication networks.
TSMC was founded in Taiwan in 1987 by Morris Chang. Its manufacturing leadership comes from advanced process technology, large fabrication plants, and long relationships with major chip designers. The company produces both leading-edge processors and mature-node chips used in many other products.
TSMC is not the same kind of business as NVIDIA or Intel. NVIDIA primarily designs chips, while TSMC manufactures chips for customers. The company's market value is influenced by demand for smartphones, data centers, AI accelerators, and other semiconductor applications, as well as by geopolitical and supply-chain risks.