TSMC is the Taiwanese semiconductor manufacturer that operates the world’s largest dedicated chip foundries.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company is the world’s leading pure-play semiconductor foundry. A foundry manufactures chips designed by other companies, allowing clients to create processors without owning their own fabrication plants. TSMC’s customers have included many leading designers of smartphone, computer, and artificial-intelligence chips.
Morris Chang founded TSMC in Taiwan in 1987. The company helped establish the dedicated-foundry business model, separating chip design from chip manufacturing. This arrangement enabled smaller or specialized design companies to compete without spending the enormous sums required to build fabrication facilities.
TSMC is often confused with integrated device manufacturers such as Intel and Samsung Electronics. Those companies both design chips and operate manufacturing facilities, while TSMC is especially identified with manufacturing chips designed by outside customers. Its advanced process technologies are measured in nanometers, although those labels are not literal measurements of every transistor feature.