Taiwan is doubling down on its semiconductor and AI lead, framing its chip and ICT strength as both an economic engine and a bargaining chip with democratic partners — good news for Taiwan's tech industry.

• President Lai Ching-te honored three new fellows at the Industrial Technology Research Institute, Taiwan's main industrial tech hub.
• The honorees include TSMC co-COO Chin Yung-pei, credited with yield breakthroughs from 28-nanometer chips down to 2-nanometer, plus Realtek chairman Chiu Shun-chien and Taipei Veterans General Hospital head Chen Wei-ming.
• Taiwan's economic rise is being cast as decades of steady buildup, not a sudden windfall, with chips, AI, and networking parts now leading globally.
• The government is pushing five "trusted industries" and a new AI infrastructure program as AI demand, the shift to net zero, and supply chain reshuffling reshape the market.
• The pitch to fellows: use international clout to tie Taiwan closer to democratic allies and make its supply chain something the world cannot do without.

Outlook: Expect Taiwan to keep leaning on chip dominance as its main shield and lure, with more state money aimed at AI buildout and getting lab technology into smaller companies.