TAIPEI (TVBS News) — Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC, 台積電), the world's leading chipmaker, celebrated a pivotal advancement in its technological capabilities on Wednesday (April 2) with the inauguration of its advanced packaging AP8 plant. The strategic facility, previously owned by display manufacturer Innolux Corp. (群創), represents a calculated move by the semiconductor giant to strengthen its position in the increasingly critical advanced packaging sector, where components from different sources are integrated into a single package.
The new facility significantly bolsters TSMC's capacity for its sophisticated Chip-on-Wafer-on-Substrate (CoWoS) technology, specifically the larger CoWoS-L and advanced CoWoS-R variants that have been in high demand. This expansion directly responds to persistent market concerns regarding production constraints and order scheduling challenges that have affected the semiconductor supply chain. Industry observers note that the company's advanced N3 and N5 manufacturing processes have maintained robust performance metrics, powered primarily by surging requirements for artificial intelligence applications and premium smartphone components, factors that have collectively pushed TSMC's production facilities to operate at exceptionally high utilization rates.
The expansion comes amid extraordinary growth in the semiconductor manufacturing sector, with market intelligence firm Counterpoint Research documenting a substantial 26% year-over-year revenue increase across the global foundry industry during the fourth quarter of 2024. TSMC's dominant position has further solidified during this period, with its market share climbing to an impressive 67% of the global foundry business.According to industry analysts, this remarkable growth trajectory has been propelled by two primary factors: the relentless expansion of artificial intelligence (AI) applications across multiple sectors and the gradual recovery of the Chinese technology market.
Market experts particularly emphasized that the combination of AI workloads and high-performance computing applications continues to drive unprecedented demand for cutting-edge manufacturing processes, positioning TSMC's advanced packaging capabilities—especially its larger CoWoS-L technology—as a fundamental driver of the company's continued expansion.
