TSMC is the world’s largest dedicated semiconductor foundry and a major high-value listed company.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company manufactures chips designed by other companies rather than primarily selling chips under its own consumer brand. This business model is called a pure-play foundry model. TSMC’s customers have included leading designers of smartphone, graphics, and artificial-intelligence processors.
The company was founded in 1987 by Morris Chang in Hsinchu, Taiwan. Its manufacturing leadership comes from advanced process technologies, large-scale fabrication plants, and deep relationships with chip designers.
TSMC is often confused with a chip designer such as Nvidia or a vertically integrated manufacturer such as Intel. Those companies may design chips, manufacture them, or do both; TSMC’s defining role is contract manufacturing.