Taiwan’s President, Lai Ching-te, took the opportunity during an interview with journalist Andrew Ross Sorkin at the DealBook Summit of The New York Times to send a carefully calculated message to the heart of the chips war: semiconductors are a global resource that require cooperation… but also clear boundaries when it comes to China and strategic risks.
His words come at a time when Washington is debating whether to relax restrictions that prevent Nvidia from selling its most advanced AI chips to the Chinese market, a key friction point in the technological competition between the two major powers.
Semiconductors as a “Global Ecosystem”
In the interview, Lai avoided taking a direct stance on U.S. domestic policy — including the decision regarding Nvidia — but outlined a very clear framework: an ecosystem of semiconductors dispersed among several advanced democracies.
According to the official transcript from the Taiwanese Presidency, Lai emphasized that the chip industry does not belong to a single country but functions as an interdependent supply chain: the United States leads in design and market share, Japan provides critical materials and equipment, the Netherlands supplies the most advanced lithography machines, Taiwan specializes in cutting-edge logic manufacturing, and South Korea leads in memory production.
Under this logic, he argued that Taiwan supports companies like TSMC continuing to invest in the U.S., Japan, and Europe to strengthen supply resilience and reduce dependence on China—an idea aligned with the “de-risking” strategies promoted by both Washington and Brussels.
The Taiwanese Precedent: When Factory Exports to China Were Halted
Asked specifically about the U.S. debate on whether companies like Nvidia should be allowed to sell their most advanced chips to China, Lai recalled Taiwan’s experience over two decades ago.
In the early 2000s, the Taiwanese government and society engaged in an intense debate:
Should leading-edge chip foundries set up factories in mainland China?
The political conclusion was clear: high-end process nodes should not be relocated to China.
Over time, Lai defended that the decision was right: if Taiwan had moved its most advanced processes across the strait, the country wouldn’t today hold the strategic position it does in the global semiconductor industry. It is precisely this capability—centered around TSMC—that has made the island a key player for both the digital economy and U.S. and allied security.
The president didn’t explicitly say what Washington should do about Nvidia, but the parallel is obvious: confronting an authoritarian neighbor with territorial ambitions over Taiwan, containing the transfer of critical capabilities is seen as a reasonable red line from Taipei.
Washington Reconsiders Limits on Nvidia Sales to China
Meanwhile, the debate in the U.S. about the extent of export bans on AI chips to China continues. Following restrictions implemented under the Biden Administration, which prevented sales of GPUs like the H100 or H200 to Chinese customers, the new Trump administration has indicated it will review whether certain limitations create “unnecessary obstacles” for U.S. companies and competitiveness.
Nvidia, seen as a symbol of the generative AI boom, is pushing to continue serving the Chinese market with scaled-down versions of its chips, while national security agencies warn of the risk that Beijing could use this computing power to develop advanced models for military or cyber espionage applications.
In this context, Lai’s statements act as a reminder that today’s export decisions could reshape the technological map for decades, much like Taiwan’s rules on restricting investment in advanced factories in China.
Diversification, AI, and Taiwan’s Central Role
Beyond export controls, Lai stressed that Taiwan’s priority is to strengthen its own resilience: reducing economic dependence on mainland China, increasing defense investment, and further anchoring its industry through alliances with the U.S., Japan, and Europe.
The surge in demand for AI chips—driven by giants like Nvidia, AMD, and Intel—has pushed Taiwan’s foundries to the edge of their capacity. Meanwhile, the U.S. and EU are ramping up their own subsidized manufacturing facilities under the CHIPS Act and European programs, aiming to prevent a conflict in the Taiwan Strait from crippling the global digital economy.
Lai’s message at the DealBook Summit forum is twofold:
- Taiwan wants to remain a reliable partner within this global semiconductor ecosystem.
- But at the same time, supports firm limits on transferring strategic capabilities to China, based on lessons learned over recent decades.
As Washington considers opening a window for Nvidia sales to China, this combination of cooperation and caution sends a clear signal: chips can be a shared global resource, but their distribution will never be free of geopolitical considerations in the 21st century.
FAQs on Lai, Nvidia, and the Chips Tug-of-War
What exactly did Lai Ching-te say about semiconductors?
He described the chip industry as a “global ecosystem” where different countries contribute essential pieces—from design to lithography equipment to manufacturing—and emphasized that semiconductors should be viewed as a shared asset, not owned exclusively by one nation.
Did Lai support U.S. approval for Nvidia to sell its most advanced chips to China?
He did not directly comment on U.S. policy but recalled that Taiwan had previously decided against allowing its leading-edge factories to operate in China, framing that precedent as critical for Taiwan’s security and technological weight today.
Why are AI chip exports to China so sensitive?
Because high-performance chips made by companies like Nvidia are essential for training cutting-edge AI models. The U.S. fears this capacity could bolster China’s military, surveillance, or cyberattack capabilities, even as the tech industry pressures to keep access to one of the world’s largest markets.
What role does Taiwan play in the global semiconductor supply chain?
With TSMC at the forefront, Taiwan dominates the manufacturing of advanced logic chips used in AI data centers, high-end mobiles, and consumer electronics. This position grants Taiwan enormous economic and strategic importance but also places it at the center of U.S.-China rivalry over critical technologies.