NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang has weighed in on the newly discussed US–Taiwan trade arrangement that’s pushing more semiconductor manufacturing toward American soil, and his message is clear: this shouldn’t be seen as Taiwan “giving up” chip production. Instead, he frames it as TSMC expanding global capacity to meet soaring demand, with the United States becoming a bigger part of that growth.
Reports tied to the deal suggest TSMC could ultimately manufacture around 40% of its overall chip output in the United States. That figure has sparked concerns that Taiwan could be forced into transferring existing production lines away from home. Huang rejects that interpretation, arguing it’s more accurate to view the situation as increasing total output rather than relocating what already exists. In other words, the world needs more chips than ever, and TSMC is being pushed to build more fabs across multiple regions to keep up.
Huang also pointed to a major practical constraint inside Taiwan: energy. Taiwan’s power limitations make it difficult for TSMC to expand indefinitely on the island at the pace global demand requires. That’s a key reason TSMC is pursuing manufacturing expansion not only in the US, but also in Europe and Japan. Huang expects demand for TSMC wafers to outstrip what Taiwan can support from an energy and infrastructure standpoint, making overseas capacity a necessity over the next decade.
From NVIDIA’s perspective, the US–Taiwan arrangement is a “win-win.” For the United States, additional domestic semiconductor fabrication capacity supports a more durable supply chain and reduces exposure to regional disruptions. For Taiwan and TSMC, large international builds help unlock the scale required to serve customers as AI, data centers, smartphones, vehicles, and industrial systems continue consuming more advanced chips.
Following the trade discussions, Taiwan also announced plans tied to a massive $500 billion investment in the United States, building on earlier commitments and signaling that expansion efforts could accelerate even further.
Still, there’s an important nuance: Taiwan has consistently emphasized keeping its most critical technologies and advanced development at home. The country is not signaling a willingness to compromise on policies designed to keep leading-edge know-how and core R&D rooted domestically. That means that while US fabrication growth could significantly boost production volume, the broader idea of a fully “resilient” supply chain depends on more than just where chips are manufactured. Advanced research, process development, and key technology leadership remain central—and much of that is still expected to stay in Taiwan.
The takeaway is that the semiconductor industry is entering a new phase, where demand growth, geopolitics, and infrastructure limits are all pushing TSMC toward global expansion. If Huang is right, the future isn’t about shifting a fixed pie from Taiwan to the US—it’s about baking a much bigger one, with new capacity coming online in multiple regions to meet a world that can’t get enough chips.
