President Joseph R. Biden visited the site of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co.’s new Arizona plant earlier this week, where TSMC plans to build a second factory and increase its investment to $40 billion.
“As the semiconductor manufacturing has truly become vital to the modern economy, there has been a growing consensus to revitalize semiconductor manufacturing in the United States,” said TSMC Chairman Mark Liu during prepared remarks on Tuesday after the President toured the site. “TSMC is also taking a giant step forward to help build a vibrant semiconductor ecosystem in the United States.”
Following Liu’s remarks, President Biden took to the podium to praise TSMC’s help in building this “vibrant semiconductor ecosystem” in the U.S., before adding: “That’s what we’re doing with your help.”
TSMC announced that it would be stepping up its plans to increase manufacturing in the U.S., raising its investment to $40 billion from $12 billion. Once its two plants in Arizona open, TSMC should be able to produce enough advanced chips to meet the U.S. annual demand (600,000 wafers per year).
“It’s the foundation of our personal electronics, and also the future of quantum computing and AI,” Ronnie Chatterji, National Economic Council acting deputy director for industrial policy who oversees CHIPS implementation, told CNBC. “At scale, these two [factories] could meet the entire U.S. demand for U.S. chips when they’re completed. That’s the definition of supply chain resilience. We won’t have to rely on anyone else to make the chips we need.”
This follows the CHIPS and Science Act getting signed into law earlier this year. The new law allocates billions of dollars to entice manufacturers to manufacture semiconductor chips in the U.S.
TSMC ramping up chip manufacturing in the U.S. has the potential to be a game-changer for the semiconductor industry. Investors looking to capitalize on such disruptive technologies like semiconductors may want to consider the Neuberger Berman Disrupters ETF (NYSE Arca: NBDS). The actively managed NBDS seeks to invest in companies pursuing disruptive growth agendas that the team believes will shape the future and can invest globally across market capitalizations.
Rather than use traditional sector classification, the fund’s managers employ a disciplined process to seek innovative companies consistent with a longer-term investment horizon. The portfolio team uses machine learning, language processing, and cloud computing techniques to construct a targeted portfolio of roughly 30 companies.
NBDS is one of three actively managed ETFs that Neuberger Berman launched in April. The ETFs are an extension of the firm’s thematic equity investment capabilities using traditional fundamental equity research along with alternative data capabilities and consideration of material environmental, social, and governance factors.
Joseph Amato, chief investment officer and president of Neuberger Berman, said in a news release that the new ETFs “deliver Neuberger Berman’s thematic equity expertise to a broad investor base.”
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