Why Micron added former TSMC chair Mark Liu to board

Reporter Ryan Wang (王子承) / Business Today (今周刊) / Photography Dung-Yueh Wu (吳東岳) / Business Today (今周刊) / Editor Dimitri Bruyas (Translator) / TVBS World Taiwan
Release time：2025/05/22 09:16
Last update time：2025/05/23 18:19

Micron appoints former TSMC chairman Mark Liu to board (Courtesy of Business Today)

TAIPEI (Business Today/TVBS News) — While the semiconductor industry is still analyzing the ripple effects of TSMC's (台積電, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company) additional US$100 billion investment in the United States, Micron Technology (美光科技), the world's third-largest DRAM manufacturer, dropped another bombshell on Tuesday afternoon, March 5. The company announced it had recruited Mark Liu (劉德音), who just stepped down as TSMC's chairman last year, to serve on its board of directors.

Micron's current chief executive, Sanjay Mehrotra (桑賈伊), said, "Mark Liu has decades of leadership experience at the world's most advanced semiconductor company and extensive experience in large-scale wafer fab operations. These experiences will help Micron expand its business scale to respond to the growth opportunities that AI is unleashing from data centers to edge computing."

HBM Evolution Demands Advanced Process Technology
Since retiring, Liu has settled in the United States, where he founded the Technology Competitiveness and Industrial Policy Center (科技競爭力與產業政策中心) at his alma mater, the University of California, Berkeley (加州大學柏克萊分校). He also serves on the school's engineering advisory committee and has established a fund called J&M Copper Beech Ventures. His decision to join Micron's board temporarily dispels rumors about his possible return to Intel (英特爾).

In fact, Liu and Mehrotra share a lesser-known connection: more than 40 years ago, they were classmates in Berkeley's electrical engineering and computer science master's program, both studying under Professor William Oldham. After graduation, both men briefly worked at Intel, though at different times.

Though the specifics of their student interactions are difficult to ascertain now, Konrad Young (楊光磊), the CEO of the National Taiwan University of Science and Technology Industry-Academia Innovation College (台科大產業創新學院) — who also earned his electrical engineering doctorate at Berkeley under Professor Oldham — noted that the professor's liberal teaching style allowed graduate students to develop topics of personal interest. During leisure time, Oldham would take students on outings and skiing trips, fostering "a special bond among students."

Several industry insiders revealed to Business Today magazine that during the global chip shortage amid the COVID-19 pandemic, a Taiwanese IC design company secured TSMC chip capacity by having Mehrotra contact Liu — a clear indication of their deep personal connection.

Despite Liu and Mehrotra being old classmates, semiconductor industry experts unanimously believe that Micron's recruitment of this heavyweight to its board values more than their years of friendship or even Liu's widely recognized technical abilities. Rather, they see it as Micron's urgent desire to strengthen its partnership with TSMC.

In the early days, foundries and DRAM manufacturers had limited interaction. Following NVIDIA's (輝達) rise, however, the high-end AI chips it designs require TSMC's advanced packaging technology called CoWoS (Chip on Wafer on Substrate) to package GPUs (Graphics Processing Units) and HBM (High Bandwidth Memory) together. This has increasingly deepened the connection between memory manufacturers and TSMC.

Moreover, memory manufacturers rely on TSMC for more than just advanced packaging. The evolution of HBM has brought memory and logic processes increasingly closer together, meaning memory makers can no longer remain confined to their traditional domain. They need foundry assistance for manufacturing HBM Base Die (基礎晶片) and even for the 3D packaging that combines HBM with Base Die.

Wu Jin-rong (吳金榮), general manager of Explore Microelectronics (微驅科技), explained that memory manufacturers previously produced Base Die using traditional processes. As the market formally enters HBM 4, Base Die now requires more advanced FinFET (Fin Field-Effect Transistor) processes that demand 12nm, 5nm, or even 3nm advanced logic processes. Memory manufacturers clearly lack such capabilities, and the world's three major HBM manufacturers — SK Hynix (SK海力士), Micron, and Samsung (三星) — have all expressed interest in outsourcing Base Die orders to TSMC.

Smooth Communication Enhances Market Share Competition
Jonah Cheng (程正樺), chief investment officer at J&J Investment (騰旭投資公司) and a well-known semiconductor analyst, has mentioned that SK Hynix intends to entrust TSMC with 3D packaging that integrates Base Die and HBM. "Future customers can modify interface designs for DRAM communication on the Base Die themselves, increasing customization flexibility and making the foundry role more important," he said.

Courting TSMC has become a common goal for SK Hynix, Micron and Samsung. Currently, SK Hynix, which leads in HBM technology, maintains the closest relationship with TSMC, even announcing plans last year to form a "One Team" with the Taiwanese foundry. By comparison, Micron, which is struggling to catch up in both technology and market share, must find ways to close the gap with TSMC while actively promoting its HBM products to NVIDIA.

Micron's recruitment of Liu appears to industry peers as building a communication bridge with TSMC. "It's similar to when former TSMC CEO Rick Tsai (蔡力行) joined MediaTek (聯發科). Sometimes a last-minute phone call can solve problems others can't resolve. In the semiconductor industry, it's also about 'having connections means having no problems,'" described a Taiwanese IC design company executive.

Galen Zeng (曾冠瑋), senior research manager at IDC (International Data Corporation), pointed out that Micron specifically recruited Liu as a director due to intense competition in the HBM market. He observed that Micron hopes to deepen cooperation with TSMC in HBM Base Die production, scheduling and performance testing to ensure technological leadership and enhance market competitiveness.

Beyond Micron's development strategy, Liu's joining the board of a landmark American company is expected to play a balancing role amid concerns over Taiwan Strait geopolitical risks. An industry insider observed that the semiconductor industry is highly concerned about the Taiwan Strait situation. Even Micron, which previously packaged all HBM in Taiwan, recently announced plans to establish an additional HBM packaging plant in Singapore — a move widely interpreted as an effort to diversify geopolitical risk.

After joining the board, Liu is expected to relay new information from Taiwan's information and communications technology sector and political circles to the United States, providing diversified perspectives. Whether Micron can leverage Liu's influence to gain greater market share in the HBM market, or whether TSMC and Micron will further strengthen their cooperation, will become one of the key concerns for the future memory market. ◼