TSMC’s Push to Be Tech’s Switzerland in Doubt as U.S.-China Tensions Grow
Taiwan’s chipmaking powerhouse is facing increasing U.S. pressure to cut off Chinese customers, while also walking a careful line to avoid offending Beijing.
If Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. had its way, the chip manufacturing powerhouse would be a neutral party in the battle between the U.S. and China for technological supremacy—a semiconductor version of Switzerland, one TSMC executive told The Information. Unfortunately, the company may find it increasingly tough to avoid picking a side.
Last month, the U.S. Commerce Department launched an investigation into whether TSMC was still producing chips for Chinese tech giant Huawei Technologies in a potential violation of U.S. sanctions that have been in force since 2020, as The Information first reported.
As a result, TSMC in recent weeks undertook a thorough review of its Chinese customer base, combing through employee emails and chip design documents, said two people with direct knowledge of the probe. During that probe, TSMC cut off supply to multiple clients with suspicious chip orders and destroyed the wafers they ordered, said the two people.
