TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Nvidia is reportedly offering annual salaries of up to NT$5.5 million (US$183,000) to lure engineers away from TSMC and other major Taiwanese tech firms.

Tom's Hardware cited a report by EBC News, saying Nvidia is allegedly offering generous salaries to attract engineers for key positions as part of its expansion plans. Nvidia is set to open an AI R&D center in Taiwan and needs top-tier talent.

As part of its R&D expansion, Nvidia must accelerate its recruitment of highly skilled engineers. According to job listings on Nvidia’s website reviewed by Tom's Hardware, the company had 97 job openings in Taiwan at the time of posting.

An infographic from the EBC News report describes Nvidia as “poaching talent.” It cited IC industry insiders as saying that last year, Nvidia poached Taiwanese engineers with high salaries and is expected to do more of the same this year. 

EBC News noted that Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang (黃仁勳) has announced plans to hire 1,000 engineers in Taiwan over the next five years to transform Taiwan from a mainly manufacturing base into a key R&D hub. EBC News said that TSMC and MediaTek are concerned about increased competition for engineers and cited Asus Chair Jonney Shih (施崇棠) as saying that Nvidia is welcome to come to Taiwan “but please don't poach our talent.”

EBC News said engineers with only two or three years of experience can command NT$3 million annually. A new master's graduate joining Nvidia could expect an annual salary of between NT$1.5 million and NT$2 million. Although these figures might seem modest by US standards, Taiwan’s tech employees often receive substantial year-end bonuses and stock options. 

Furthermore, Numbeo data shows living expenses in Taiwan are 24.9% cheaper than in the US, excluding rent, and 37.9% cheaper when rent is included.