TSMC CEO opts out of Trump inauguration, stays low-key unlike other tech leaders

The CEO of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) will miss President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration, which is expected to be attended by prominent tech sector figures. According to the firm’s Chief Executive Officer, CC Wei they will not make a donation either since the world’s largest chipmaker prefers to maintain a low profile. Tech industry leaders show support for Trump’s inauguration As Donald Trump prepares for his second term in the White House, prominent figures have publicly expressed their support for him, even through financial contributions. According to Axios , Tim Cook, the CEO of Apple, is now on that list. Cook reportedly gave $1 million to Donald Trump’s inauguration committee. He’s hardly the only prominent tech figure to do this. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, and Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg have also contributed money, as tech company executives compete to win over the incoming government. The Monday inauguration is expected to draw leaders throughout the tech industry, including Apple Inc. CEO Tim Cook, Amazon.com Inc. founder Jeff Bezos, and Tesla’s Elon Musk. TSMC addresses US-China tensions and AI growth amid new chip restrictions Wei’s decision aligns with intensifying US restrictions aimed at curbing the flow of advanced chips to China. The outgoing administration of President Joe Biden recently introduced a new framework for the export of advanced computer chips used to develop artificial intelligence. They noted that this is an attempt to balance national security concerns about the technology with the economic interests of producers and other countries. Several firms, including Nvidia, have criticized these restrictions. They believe that the decision, which was hastily implemented in the final days of the outgoing administration, would harm American innovation. Wei’s comments came as TSMC boosted market sentiment with a better-than-expected forecast for revenue and capital expenditures in 2025. This strong performance reinforced optimism surrounding an unprecedented AI spending cycle, which propelled companies like Nvidia to record-breaking levels. The rise of ChatGPT has driven rapid data center expansion over the past two years, benefiting hardware providers in the AI sector. Still, the lack of any big profit-generating AI applications so far has stoked concerns about a potential bubble. And like much of the industry, TSMC is grappling with uncertainties stemming from a US-China tech conflict that threatens to disrupt supply chains around the world. Wei sounded unconcerned about how the limits would affect TSMC’s operations. He noted that the effects of the restrictions appeared “manageable” and would not affect chips used in non-AI sectors such as automotive and crypto-mining. He said: “ We have communicated with the US government. We understand from that communication that what they care about most is AI and that they view automotive, consumer electronics and other applications as normal business. Land a High-Paying Web3 Job in 90 Days: The Ultimate Roadmap