Governor Katie Hobbs is traveling in Taiwan for a diplomatic and business trade mission. During the trip, the Governor is meeting with Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te, executives from the TSMC management team, and cutting-edge tech companies to reinforce the mutually beneficial relationship between Taiwan and Arizona and capitalize on the forward momentum in Arizona’s high-tech manufacturing industry.
“I’m thrilled by Arizona’s emergence as America’s hub for advanced manufacturing, creating hundreds of thousands of good-paying jobs and bringing billions of dollars of investment into our state,” said Governor Katie Hobbs. “I am laser-focused on cementing Arizona as America’s top market for business and innovation. We will continue our success by capitalizing on our growth in the semiconductor industry and further building our ecosystem, attracting key companies from around the world at the cutting-edge of technology development and emerging industries like AI. Arizona is the best place in the world to do business, and I look forward to delivering that message to industry leaders in Taiwan.”
Governor Hobbs will be joined by Arizona Commerce Authority President and CEO Sandra Watson
“Arizona enjoys a long and robust partnership with Taiwan that’s been bolstered by collaboration in areas like technology, defense, supply chain, cultural exchange, workforce development, and more,” said Arizona Commerce Authority President and CEO Sandra Watson. “We look forward to meeting with President Lai Ching-te and many industry partners to further grow this important relationship and we appreciate Governor Hobbs’ continued leadership to expand these ties.”
The trip comes just weeks after TSMC announced their intention to invest $100 billion to build three additional semiconductor fabs, two advanced packaging facilities, and an R&D center, all of which is expected to create 40,000 construction jobs over the next four years and tens of thousands of good-paying tech and manufacturing jobs. After the announcement, Governor Hobbs was the first elected official to visit F21 following the start of production of 4 nm chips on US soil at TSMC’s Fab 21 in North Phoenix..
During the trip, Governor Hobbs is meeting with cutting-edge high tech companies and AI-industry suppliers.
The trip builds on Governor Hobbs’ success attracting and expanding high-tech businesses in the state, leading the nation in new semiconductor investment and jobs, and securing important federal funding. During Governor Hobbs’ tenure:
- Tempe-based Amkor invested $2 billion in the state to launch its state-of-the-art semiconductor packaging facility in Peoria.
- LG Energy Solution announced a $5.5 billion battery manufacturing complex in Queen Creek, the largest stand-alone battery facility in North America.
- ASM announced its new R&D, manufacturing, and training center in Scottsdale, expected to create 500 high-paying jobs.
- American Battery Factory broke ground in Tucson on its $1.2 billion gigafactory, creating an estimated 1,000 jobs.
- Intel is investing $32 billion into two leading-edge fabs in Chandler, supporting more 10,000 jobs.
- Sunlit Chemical opened its US facility in Phoenix to provide critical materials that support the U.S. semiconductor industry.
- Earlier this year, ASU Research Park in Tempe was announced as one of three CHIPS for America R&D Flagship Facilities, representing a multi-billion dollar investment and Arizona’s first national laboratory.
