TSMC manufactures chips for companies such as Apple and Nvidia as a leading contract semiconductor foundry.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, usually abbreviated TSMC, pioneered the dedicated foundry model. Instead of primarily designing chips for its own branded products, it manufactures integrated circuits designed by other companies. This lets chip designers outsource fabrication while concentrating on architecture and software.
TSMC was founded in Taiwan in 1987 by Morris Chang. Its advanced manufacturing processes have made it a critical supplier for high-performance processors, smartphone chips, graphics processors, and artificial-intelligence accelerators.
TSMC can rank among the world’s most valuable companies because of its strategic importance and technological lead. It is often confused with Nvidia: Nvidia designs many of the AI chips, while TSMC manufactures chips designed by Nvidia and other customers. Samsung and Intel also operate major semiconductor manufacturing businesses.