TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The U.S. has no way of competing with Asia and Taiwan in the field of semiconductors, Acer founder Stan Shih (施振榮) said Wednesday (July 26).

Due to national security reasons, Washington has been attempting to base as many sensitive high-tech industries inside the U.S. as possible, but key supply chains have already moved out of the country, Shih said. As a result, the computer brand pioneer said that regardless of cultural factors, the U.S. would be unable to replicate Taiwan’s formula, CNA reported.

Shih signed a memorandum of understanding on Wednesday with Taipei City’s Soochow University and Arizona-based Thunderbird School of Global Management to promote the training of international semiconductor talent. The agreement is intended to help Taiwanese businesses solve a shortage of global managers.

Employees will never be replaced by artificial intelligence (AI), according to Shih. However, there is still a shortage of talent that is able to manage AI, which is likely to grow more acute, he said.

Soochow University School of Business Dean Jinshyang Roan (阮金祥) said his college has been cooperating with Thunderbird for 16 years. Several graduates have joined major tech firms, including Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) and ASML Holding, he said.

In addition to foreign language skills, international managers also need to have a vision and understand the laws, customs, and culture of the country they are doing business in, according to Roan.