Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited (TSM), universally recognized as TSMC, operates as the vanguard of the global semiconductor industry. Having pioneered the pure-play dedicated semiconductor foundry business model in 1987, the company has catalyzed the rise of the fabless integrated circuit (IC) design ecosystem. As of the first quarter of 2026, TSMC retains an overwhelming dominance in the pure-play foundry market, commanding approximately 72% of global market share.1 The industry, often referred to by TSMC management as "Foundry 2.0" (which encapsulates logic wafer manufacturing, advanced packaging, testing, and mask-making), experienced a 16% year-over-year growth in 2025 and is forecast to expand by an additional 14% in 2026.2

TSMC’s technological supremacy is the foundation of its competitive moat. The company deployed ...