TSMC Chairman and President C.C. Wei (魏哲家) attended the National Science and Technology conference on Monday, where he said that Taiwan plays a pivotal role in the global application of A.I. technology.
Wei shared that in interactions with customers over the past two months, AI and its applications were popular topics. He also mentioned a discussion with the world’s richest entrepreneur in which they discussed that the future of technology lies in multifunctional robots and the entrepreneur's concerns about where the chips for such development would come from.
Wei said that the biggest difference between robots and humans is one of precision versus flexibility. The secret to a precise robot lies in the design of the chips and software it contains– something Taiwan has both the talent and environment to develop and invest in. Every AI needs good chips, and from that angle, Taiwan plays a decisive role in the global rollout of AI and robotics.
Other areas that Taiwan’s chips could play an important role is in the use of drones to carry objects or even someday people. Wei mentioned how AI might also contribute to energy saving and carbon emission reduction by optimizing resource use, which increases profits by tens of billions of NT dollars every year. This optimization would also be good for reducing carbon footprints and increasing sustainability.