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Taiwanese chipmaker restarts talks on UAE factory

By Pramod Kumar
TSMC CEO C.C. Wei (left) and Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang. TSMC has held multiple talks with US envoy Steve Witkoff and Abu Dhabi's MGX Reuters/Ann Wang
TSMC CEO C.C. Wei (left) and Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang. TSMC has held multiple talks with US envoy Steve Witkoff and Abu Dhabi's MGX

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) is reportedly continuing to hold talks to open a factory in the UAE after discussions paused at the end of former US President Joe Biden’s term.

The Taiwanese company held multiple meetings with Steve Witkoff, the US special envoy to the Middle East, and executives from Abu Dhabi’s MGX on opening the plant, Bloomberg reported, citing informed sources.

MGX was launched in March last year by founding partners Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund Mubadala Investment Company and G42, the emirate’s artificial intelligence (AI) investment arm. 

The timeline for a potential UAE site remains unclear and may take several years, Bloomberg said.

In May, the US and UAE announced the development of a 10-square-mile AI campus in Abu Dhabi during a meeting between US president Donald Trump and UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

The first phase of the five-gigawatt Stargate UAE will come online in 2026 and will use hundreds of thousands of advanced Nvidia graphics processing units (GPUs).

This was made possible by Washington’s cancellation of export controls to the UAE following an Emirati charm offensive, promises of investment in the US and a severing of G42’s China investments.

Last year, The Wall Street Journal reported that TSMC and Samsung Electronics were exploring the possibility of opening mega-manufacturing facilities in the UAE.

The terms of discussion included the UAE’s funding for the projects, with Abu Dhabi-based sovereign Mubadala playing a key role. 

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