Taiwan will keep its lead in semiconductors

Significance

TSMC has a market share of more than 50% in chip manufacturing, and makes the vast majority of cutting-edge chips. Securing chip supply is now an issue of national and economic security for the United States, China and other major countries, putting Taiwan's dominance into question.

Impacts

• Chip shortages will not be solved until next year; all aspects of manufacturing will be affected.
• Most products only need lower-end chips and Chinese producers are likely to satisfy this demand by producing higher volumes.
• Companies will explore silicon alternatives and shift to cloud computing, where connecting devices can run on slower chips.
• Competition will intensify for talent necessary to run chip fabrication plants.