Morris Chang discusses Japan's place in the semiconductor industry and how fabless companies transformed the U.S. market. The conversation traces the historical evolution of chip manufacturing and the competitive dynamics that shaped the industry.
You know, you look at this, you look at what's happened historically, it's really fascinating because in the late 70s and early 80s, I think there was this thought that Japan would take over the entire semiconductor industry. And in fact that has not been what's happened. In fact, there was the rise of TSMC and Taiwan semiconductor industry then, now mainland China, Korea, obviously. How do you see what, what really caused this kind of evolution and these changes?
Well, I really think that the problem with Japan, with the Japanese industry, was that they never created a fabulous industry. It was the fabulous industry in the United States that came up with all the innovations, almost all the innovations in the last 20 years. So I mean, there was this industry, Japanese semiconductor industry conference, oh, five or six years ago, and I was invited to attend, but I was not invited to participate in a panel that they had. So the panel, the panelists were all the Japanese industrialists, semiconductor industrialists, sitting up there discussing that they wanted the government to fund a common fad for them now, like tsmc. That's what he said up on the stage. And I was sitting downstage, I was really getting very impatient. And then finally, finally they stopped talking and the chairman of the panel asked if anybody in the audience wanted to make any comment. So I raised my hand and they all knew me. Anyway, I said, I don't think your problem was not having a common fabulous. Your problem was that you just never had a fabulous company. It was the fabless companies. You know, the big difference that has occurred in the last, at that time was, I think something like 2005. Between 1985 and 2005, the 20 year time period, the Japanese market share had dropped 20%, 20 points and the American market share had gone up 20 points. And the fabulous, in the meantime, all American went from 0 to 20%. And that was the difference.
Well, not only did they do that, but they also didn't go into the hardcore foundry business, the pure play foundry business, which they could have done. They had the technology early on, they were good at the manufacturing side, but they decided not to do it, I guess.
Yeah, but I wouldn't have welcomed them to that.
I know you would have afraid of you, Morris.
I would welcome them to create a fabulous industry that we could then serve.
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