My understanding is that 1 company in Taiwan makes the greatest chips in the world and no one else can replicate them. How is that possible?

Question

My understanding is that 1 company in Taiwan makes the greatest chips in the world and no one else can replicate them. How is that possible?

In: Engineering

Answer 1

It’s not that other companies can’t replicate them, it’s that the amount of startup money needed to get a top of the line chip manufacturing facility running is immense. In the 80s, the Taiwanese government put up a large amount of that startup money believing that it would pay off later, and it did. Lots of companies decided they’d rather pay Taiwan’s company to manufacture their chips for them instead of build their own facilities.