Qualcomm has stepped up its procurement from Taiwan, where the chip company is expanding its local operations by adding a new factory building.
A ceremony was held on March 17 to mark the official opening of Qualcomm's new factory building at the Hsinchu Science Park in northern Taiwan. The event, which was attended by Qualcomm executives as well as executives from Qualcomm's partners such as TSMC and ASE Technology, also commemorated the 20th anniversary of the US vendor's extensive cultivation in Taiwan.
Qualcomm's chip purchases from Taiwan totaled NT$240 billion (US$7.86 billion) in 2022, up from just NT$90 billion five years ago. The purchases will top NT$300 billion this year, according to Qualcomm SVP and chief supply chain and operations officer Roawen Chen.
Qualcomm has expanded its local workforce in Taiwan to a total of 1,700 employees, with 800 hired in the last four years, Chen indicated. The chip vendor has also stepped up its investment in Taiwan, which came to NT$43 billion last year.
The new factory building demonstrates Qualcomm's commitment to continuing to invest and develop in Taiwan, Chen said. The building will house Qualcomm's operations and process engineering and testing center, multimedia R&D center, mobile artificial intelligence innovation center, and CPU design team, with the goal of becoming an important hub for strengthening Qualcomm's cooperative relationship with its Taiwan-based partners.
Article translated by Jessie Shen
