TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — TSMC said Thursday that global semiconductor output could reach NT$47.27 trillion (US$1.5 trillion) by 2030, driven by rapid growth in AI and high-performance computing.
Speaking at TSMC’s Taiwan Technology Symposium in Hsinchu, Senior Vice President and Deputy Co-COO Kevin Zhang (張曉強) said AI has surpassed expectations and is reshaping the semiconductor industry at an unprecedented pace, per CNA. He said smartphones fueled chip growth over the past decade but AI will drive the industry’s next phase.
Zhang projected AI and high-performance computing will account for 55% of global semiconductor output by 2030, followed by smartphones at 20%, automotive applications at 10%, and the Internet of Things at 10%. He added that the foundry sector alone could generate NT$15.77 trillion by the end of the decade.
Nearly all AI accelerators today are produced through the foundry ecosystem, which separates IC design from manufacturing and allows chip developers to focus on innovation, Zhang explained.
Zhang said photonics and optical interconnect technologies will become important as AI systems grow larger and require faster, lower-power communications. He highlighted the company’s Compact Universal Photonic Engine, designed to support high-speed optical data transmission between AI systems.
TSMC Asia-Pacific business director Wan Rui-yang (萬睿洋) said AI is also penetrating edge computing applications such as home appliances and automobiles, per TechNews. Smartphones are becoming personal AI assistants, he said.
Last year, TSMC’s Asia-Pacific customers used more than 2.1 million 12-inch equivalent wafers, which would stack vertically to about 1,600 meters, Wan explained. He said these wafers helped customers mass produce around 2,600 products, including solid state drives, USB devices, and smartphone chips, and looks forward to an AI future.
