TAIPEI — In a bold declaration of confidence in Taiwan’s tech future, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang has announced plans to build the island’s first artificial intelligence supercomputer, deepening its grip on a sector already critical to global innovation.
Speaking Monday at the opening of Computex, one of the world’s largest technology trade shows, Huang said the project would be built in partnership with Taiwanese giants Foxconn and TSMC, along with support from the local government.
“Taiwan doesn’t just build supercomputers for the world,” Huang told a packed keynote hall in Taipei. “We’re also building AI for Taiwan.” The island, he added, “is the centre of the AI industry.”
The announcement comes at a tense moment. Tech firms gathered at Computex are facing a barrage of challenges from shifting supply chains to growing US trade restrictions that threaten to disrupt global chip flows. But Huang, who was born in Taiwan, struck a confident tone. “Having a world-class AI infrastructure in Taiwan is really important,” he said.
The planned supercomputer will anchor Nvidia’s efforts to expand its AI ecosystem in Asia, powering research, enterprise services and next-generation robotics. Huang also revealed an upgrade to Nvidia’s Blackwell chip platform and a new version of NVLink, which will allow companies to build semi-custom AI systems tailored to their needs.
“In ten years, you’ll look back and realise AI has found its way into everything,” Huang said. “And we need AI everywhere.”
Strategic Stakes
Taiwan’s importance in the chip industry is hard to overstate. The island produces over 60 percent of the world’s semiconductors and more than 90 percent of the most advanced chips the kind used in smartphones, military gear and artificial intelligence systems like ChatGPT.
That dominance has long been viewed as a strategic buffer, or what some analysts call Taiwan’s “silicon shield” a reason for major powers, including the United States, to protect it against threats from Beijing.
But that grip is being tested. Washington has imposed export bans on advanced AI chips to China and launched investigations into semiconductor imports. President Donald Trump has also floated fresh tariffs, aiming to pull more tech production back to the US.
Last month, Taiwan pledged to boost its American investments to avoid a proposed 32 percent tariff on its chip exports. Chipmaker TSMC plans to inject an additional $100 billion into US operations, beyond the $65 billion already committed. GlobalWafers, a key TSMC supplier, just opened a new $4 billion wafer facility in Texas.
Still, the mood at Computex is more focused on innovation than protectionism. Qualcomm’s CEO Cristiano Amon confirmed plans to expand into data centres, although details remain scarce. Other top executives from Foxconn and MediaTek are expected to speak later in the week.
Eyes on the Future
AI remains the headline act. The focus is now shifting from data centres to everyday devices laptops, robots, even cars.
Paul Yu, a technology analyst at Taiwan’s Witology Markettrend Research Institute, said the industry is entering a pivotal stretch. “Over the past two and a half years, we’ve seen heavy investment in AI. But 2025 to 2026 will be the moment when companies must turn those investments into real applications,” he told media.
Competition is heating up, not just in the West but also in China. Smartphone maker Xiaomi this week pledged nearly $7 billion to develop its own high-end chips, a move seen as a response to growing restrictions on foreign tech.
Yet despite the shifting tides, Huang remains bullish on Taiwan’s future.
“I fully expect Taiwan to continue to thrive before, after, throughout,” he said, brushing aside concerns about tariffs. For Nvidia and its peers, Taiwan is not just a manufacturing hub. It’s the beating heart of a fast-changing digital world.
