Semiconductors & Chipmaking · Recorded milestone
Pure-play chip foundry
Recorded year1987
Morris Chang founds TSMC to make chips for other companies, so firms can design chips without owning a fab.
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Led to
- Graphics processor (GPU)Recorded · 1999enables
- Silicon interposer packagingRecorded · 2011enables
- AI accelerator chipsRecorded · 2016enables
- Chiplet processorsRecorded · 2017enables
- Wafer-scale AI processorRecorded · 2019enables
- Small fast-turn chip fabsForecast · ~2030enables
- Lights-out AI-run chip fabForecast · ~2032enables
- Zero-waste chip fabsForecast · ~2062enables
Sources & evidence
Dataset updated 2026-10-18. This individual record has not been separately re-reviewed.