Taipei: President Donald Trump got it wrong when he claimed that Taiwan had “taken about 100 percent of our chips business,” technology reporter Owen Lin said Saturday. “Taiwan creates more jobs for Americans and makes affordable, efficient chips for many American companies such as Apple, Nvidia, and Broadcom, allowing their products to be marketed worldwide,” he stated.

According to Focus Taiwan, Lin made these remarks at a book launch event in Taipei for the English edition of his “Chip Champion: The Triumph of TSMC and Taiwan.” The book unravels the success story of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC), which Lin has closely observed since its inception in 1987. Lin further commented on U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick’s ambition for Taiwanese companies to manufacture half of America’s chips domestically, describing it as “difficult within 10 years” due to challenges related to talent and culture.

In his analysis, Lin emphasized the necessity for the United States to collaborate with Asian allies like Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan to revive domestic chip manufacturing. Each of these countries holds particular strengths in equipment, materials, memory, and wafer foundry. Lin also highlighted that while TSMC’s role has gained more attention amid geopolitical tensions, his book aims to shed light on the company’s overlooked keys to success.

Elizabeth Sun, former TSMC deputy spokesperson, and Peter Kurz, Chair of Alpha Ring International, joined Lin at the event. Sun praised the book for its entertaining and accurate portrayal of TSMC’s success, attributing it to government support, founder Morris Chang’s leadership, and employee contributions. However, she criticized media portrayals of TSMC employees as excessively driven, urging for a more respectful view of their work ethic and culture.

Sun described TSMC as a “learning organization” that focuses on resolving issues through collaboration rather than blame. This approach, which she termed as a “solid DNA inside TSMC,” is also explored in Lin’s book. The English edition, published by Good Morning Press, follows the original traditional Chinese edition released in 2023, along with Japanese and Korean translations.