CONNECT WITH US

NDC: Taiwan IoT-related industry expects another double-digit growth in 2022

Judy Lin, DIGITIMES, Taipei 0

Ming-Hsin Kung, minister of the National Development Council

At the Smart Enterprise Forum hosted by Taiwania Capital and Asia Silicon Valley, the National Development Council chief Ming-Hsin Kung disclosed the outstanding performance of the industry related to the Internet of Things (IoT) technology and gave some policy guidance for the future.

As the government economic policy and planning agency, the NDC influences the industrial policies of Taiwan. Kung said NDC has three core topics to focus on the issue of digital transformation, including investments and research and developments in the next-generation semiconductors, 5G and AIOT (AI+IoT).

Kung revealed that the production value of Taiwan's Internet of Things (IoT) industries had reached NT$1.77 trillion (US$60 billion) in 2021, and is expected to top NT$2 trillion in 2022, or 13% year-on-year.

Meanwhile, the production value of the semiconductor industry in Taiwan had exceeded NT$4 trillion, increasing by more than 20% annually. It is poised to break the NT$5 trillion benchmark very soon, said Kung.

"Taiwan's smart city solutions have had very successful implementations," Kung told the forum participants in a keynote speech. "Besides smart manufacturing, half of our smart rural and city applications have been exported overseas."

The solutions that can be applicable to 5Gs are especially popular. "5G Open RAN architecture gives Taiwan companies and startups a better chance to participate in the industry than the locked-in structure of telecom technologies in the past, and worldwide demand for digital transformation has attracted many foreign firms to become partners with their Taiwanese counterparts," said Kung.

Kung promised to provide further deregulations and policy sandbox measures for the development of AIOT applications, including a sandbox for unmanned autonomous vehicles (UAV). "The government can also provide some incentives, such as tax deductions for companies that have implemented smart manufacturing equipment or 5Gs."

To implement a friendly environment for such undertaking, Taiwan has already allocated NT$49 billion for 5G infrastructure constructions. The NDC also has made investments in startups and innovative companies through venture capital funds, including those managed by Taiwania Capital, in an effort to build up an ecosystem benign for innovations, said Kung.