TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Advanced Semiconductor Engineering (ASE) CEO Tien Wu (吳田玉) spoke at a Semicon Taiwan 2024 pre-show press conference on Monday (Sept. 2), where he said artificial intelligence (AI) will not only change the IT industry, but also impact industries across the entire economy.
Wu encouraged semiconductor professionals to collaborate across different sectors as the semiconductor industry approaches a critical moment. Wu believes AI will be the defining future trend, pushing Taiwan's semiconductor industry to the front line of technological innovation.
He believes the industry currently faces three major challenges. The first is the rapid advancement of AI software available in cloud-based services and edge devices, which will outstrip the capability of hardware solutions, creating a bottleneck for future technological advancement, per CNA.
Secondly, Wu said supply chain restructuring is inevitable. Wu said Taiwan occupies an important place in global chip design, wafer foundries, and packaging and testing. However, Taiwan also relies upon global partners for materials, equipment, and memory.
Wu said AI's long-term development will mean that semiconductor solutions can no longer be solved by a single chip. Wu believes there will be no single standard in the world, with different customers in various regions having diverse plans and requirements.
Thirdly, Wu anticipates geopolitical pressure will increase for the semiconductor industry with more governments eager to participate in the long-term development of AI.
To overcome future challenges, Wu believes semiconductor companies will need to choose suitable partners that will assist them in pursuing the right direction for development. Wu said closer cooperation with upstream and downstream partners will be one of the keys to success for Taiwan.
While Taiwan has achieved its goal of semiconductor development in a short period, creating many opportunities for domestic companies, it will also face various responsibilities and challenges in the future.
