TAIPEI (TVBS News) — NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang (黃仁勳) announced plans Monday (May 19) to build the island's first giant AI supercomputer, partnering with tech powerhouses Foxconn, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited (TSMC), and the Taiwanese government. Speaking ahead of COMPUTEX Taipei, Taiwan's premier technology trade show, Huang outlined his revolutionary vision of "AI factories" meant to reshape Taiwan's technological landscape.
"AI has now integrated into everything, and in fact, we need AI everywhere and every region, every industry, every country, every company, all need AI," Huang said during his presentation. "AI has now part of infrastructure, and this infrastructure just like the internet, just like electricity, needs factories."
The NVIDIA chief emphasized that these new computing centers represent a fundamental shift from traditional data centers. Drawing a clear distinction, Huang elaborated on his vision with conviction. "It's going to emerge as something completely different, completely separated from the world's data center. And these AI data centers, if you will, are improperly described. They are, in fact, AI factories," he explained.
Huang highlighted Taiwan's strategic position in this technological transformation, emphasizing the island's unique advantages in the global tech landscape. "Well, it stands to reason. It stands to reason that Taiwan, at the center of the most advanced industry. The epicenter where AI and robotics is going to come from. It stands to reason that this is an extraordinary opportunity for Taiwan," he said.
The supercomputer initiative represents a significant investment in Taiwan's AI infrastructure, potentially worth billions of New Taiwan dollars. Huang announced, "Taiwan doesn't just build supercomputers for the world. Today, I'm very happy to announce that we're also building AI for Taiwan. Today, we are also announcing that Foxcon, Taiwan, Taiwanese government, TSMC, and NVIDIA. We are going to build the first giant AI supercomputer here for the AI infrastructure and the AI ecosystem of Taiwan."
This announcement coincided with plans for NVIDIA's new Taipei headquarters, dubbed NVIDIA CONSTELLATION. The ambitious facility reflects the company's deepening commitment to Taiwan, a strategic move amid ongoing global supply chain restructuring and increasingly complex international technology regulations.
Huang envisions new AI factories that integrate GPUs, software, and networking into unified platforms designed to power the next generation of intelligent systems. Industry analysts suggest these facilities could require investments potentially reaching hundreds of billions of NT dollars.
Industry experts view this development as reinforcing Taiwan's position as a global technology hub, particularly in the semiconductor ecosystem that Huang described as the ideal location for advancing AI development. The island, already home to TSMC, the world's largest contract chipmaker, stands to cement its technological leadership.
"This whole new industry is going to expose us to giant opportunities ahead. I live forward to parting with all of you. I'm building AI factories, agents, for enterprises, robots, all of you amazing partners building the ecosystem with us around one architecture," Huang concluded. "And so I want to thank all of you for coming today. Have a great COMPUTEX. Thank you."
Many in Taiwan hope the island will become the birthplace of these revolutionary AI factories that Huang envisions, cementing its role in the next wave of technological innovation. Government officials and industry leaders across Taiwan have expressed optimism that this partnership could establish the island as the global epicenter for AI development. ◼
