Taiwan's Nanotechnology Industry

Although still in its infancy, Taiwan’s nanotechnology industry seems poised for growth. Taiwan’s government has made a concerted effort to promote nanotechnology in Taiwan and since 2003 the nanotechnology sector has seen more than NTD300 billion in revenue (source). The government recently pledged another NTD23.2 billion over the next six years to developing nanotechnology in Taiwan. Invest in Taiwan last year reported 62% of the NTD23.2 billion is “earmarked for industrialization.” The rest will be directed towards R&D. This level of investment shows Taiwan’s intent to become a major competitor in the nanotechnology industry.

Furthermore, government support for nanotechnology R&D has provided a lease on life for ailing companies that were highly exposed to competitive forces from China, India and other South East Asian countries, who leveraged cheap labor costs to force some of Taiwan’s more traditional companies onto the back foot. In 2004 the government publication Taiwan Review highlighted how Kai Pong Ceramics become a nanomaterials manufacturer after their traditional ceramics business was in danger of being closed down as a result of competitive pressure.

TSMC is perhaps the leading Taiwanese nanotechnology (nanoelectronics) companies. In October 2005 they were invited to join seven of the world's leading IC manufacturers; including Infineon, Intel, Matsushita/Panasonic, Philips, Samsung, STMicroelectronics and Texas Instruments; as a core partner on the sub-45nm CMOS program at IMEC (Interuniversity Microelectronics Centre), one of Europe’s leading microelectronics research facilities. In 2006 TSMC also signed a contract with NXP to work on nanoelectronics devices and in that year spent over NTD1 billion on R&D.

Taiwan’s nanotechnology sector seems to be gaining credibility. Taiwanese nanotechnology researchers participate in the annual nanotechnology expo in Japan and Taiwan recently signed a cooperative agreement with Australia to further develop the nanotechnology cooperation between the two countries.

Additionally, according to Invest in Taiwan:

Taiwan researchers have published a total of 3,745 articles for international publications and journals. To date, Taiwan has obtained 310 overseas patents and 39 domestic patents, and under the program, has seen 232 cases of technology transfer and 184 cases of advanced technology transfers, worth approximately NTD 170 million. One hundred seventy-five companies are engaged in nanotechnology investment, worth a total of over NTD 3.96 billion to date.

While this doesn’t necessarily imply success, the commitment of the government to the commercialization of these technologies possibly means there will be opportunities in the future for Taiwan high tech firms and others to successfully commercialize this research and develop a whole new high tech industry in Taiwan.

I personally am looking forward to see how the nanotechnology industry in Taiwan develops in the future.