(Jan 9): Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co’s (TSMC) revenue topped estimates, reinforcing hopes of sustained global artificial intelligence (AI) spending in 2026 despite concerns about an industry bubble.
The go-to chipmaker for Nvidia Corp reported a roughly 20% rise in December-quarter revenue to 1.05 trillion New Taiwan (NT) dollar (US$33.1 billion, or RM134.58 billion), based on calculations off monthly figures. That compares with an average projection for NT$1.02 trillion.
Boosted by demand for data centre chips, Nvidia executives expressed optimism this week about a brighter revenue outlook, countering fears that infrastructure construction is outpacing AI adoption. TSMC, a major manufacturer of chips for Apple Inc, may have got a boost also from strong sales of the iPhone 17 launched in September.
TSMC has been one of the biggest beneficiaries of the post-ChatGPT AI boom, riding its central role in manufacturing advanced AI accelerators. Global technology giants from Microsoft Corp to Meta Platforms Inc are spending upwards of US$1 trillion collectively on data centre projects to capitalise on growing AI adoption, but investors worry that the capacity in train will surpass actual usage.
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The circular nature of many of those data centre arrangements, in which investments and spending go back and forth between OpenAI and a few publicly traded tech giants, also concerns Wall Street.
TSMC will report full quarterly earnings next week, along with a forecast on capital spending for 2026. Last year, the company benefitted from rush orders when clients stockpiled chips before US tariffs kicked in. It earmarked US$40 billion to US$42 billion for expansion and upgrades in 2025.
Multiple brokerages including JPMorgan Chase have raised their price targets on TSMC since the start of the year, citing expectations of strong revenue growth and improving profitability.
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