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In an era swept by the AI wave, Taiwan is strategically positioning itself for the next technological high ground with a new vision. According to the latest statement from National Development Council Minister Liu Chien-chung, silicon photonics technology is expected to peak in 2027, giving Taiwan’s semiconductor packaging industry a 10 to 20-year lead. This article will focus on the strategic role of semiconductors and silicon photonics within the AI New Ten Major Infrastructure Projects.
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Silicon Photonics Technology: Light Transmission Replaces Copper, Revolutionizing Packaging
Silicon photonics is a technology that integrates optical components onto silicon chips, using light to transmit data instead of traditional copper wires, significantly boosting transmission efficiency and speed. Liu stated that this technology is expected to be exported from Taiwan by the end of this year and enter its peak period in 2027.
Compared to traditional electrical transmission, silicon photonics can reduce power consumption, lower latency, and enhance bandwidth, making it particularly suitable for high-performance computing (HPC), AI training, and data centers. Taiwan, being an early developer of silicon photonics packaging, boasts three major advantages: patents, technology, and a complete industry chain, positioning it to potentially lead the global market.
Silicon Photonics Technology Principle: Innovation Blending Optics and Silicon Processes
Silicon Photonics technology integrates optical components like waveguides, lasers, optical modulators, and photodetectors onto silicon chips, allowing data transmission within computers or between chips to use light as the medium.
The core advantage of this technology lies in leveraging light’s high speed and low loss characteristics to resolve bottlenecks faced by traditional copper wires or electrical signals during high-frequency, big data transmission. These issues include signal attenuation, transmission delay, and excessive power consumption.
For example, today’s AI servers must process vast datasets. If high-speed data transfer between chips still relies on traditional electrical signals, performance and energy efficiency will face limits. Silicon photonics, by contrast, transmits data within chips via optical waveguides, achieving speeds of tens of Gbps to Tbps with extremely low heat generation. This helps data centers save energy and cool down, and also supports the scalability needs of future AI systems.
Furthermore, silicon photonics utilizes existing CMOS processes (standard silicon semiconductor manufacturing technology), ensuring compatibility with traditional chip production lines. This lowers manufacturing costs and expansion barriers, accelerating its commercialization.
A 10 to 20-Year Lead: The New Resilience of Taiwan’s Semiconductor Packaging Industry
Liu emphasized that Taiwan not only leads in technology but also possesses a complete semiconductor supply chain, from wafer manufacturing and packaging/testing to end-use applications. As silicon photonics becomes the core foundation for new-generation AI and cloud architectures, this leading edge will significantly strengthen the resilience of Taiwan’s industry, enabling it to withstand international competition and supply chain shocks.
The industrialization of silicon photonics will not only elevate a single technological field but also drive the simultaneous upgrading of peripheral industries such as packaging design, materials, equipment, and EDA tools, forming the next wave of semiconductor innovation clusters.
AI’s New Ten Major Infrastructure Projects: Semiconductors Are a Key Driver
According to Liu Chien-chung, the AI New Ten Major Infrastructure Projects include four foundational infrastructures, three technological infrastructures, and multiple application initiatives. Silicon photonics is one of the most crucial technological infrastructures, listed alongside quantum technology and intelligent robotics.
Moreover, Liu mentioned that the government will promote the adoption of AI technology by one million enterprises to build an “AI-powered smart living ecosystem for all citizens” and foster a new generation of trillion-dollar industries. The realization of these AI applications inherently relies on powerful, stable, and high-performance semiconductor support, making semiconductors indispensable in AI development.
Balanced Regional Development: From Southern Silicon Valley to Northern Biotech Corridor
The government is simultaneously promoting regional development and industrial布局 (layout). Southern regions like Tainan and Kaohsiung are focusing on high-tech and wafer manufacturing centers. Central Taiwan is concentrating on precision machinery and semiconductor application industries. The northern region emphasizes a biotechnology corridor extending from Neihu Technology Park, Nankang Software Park, and Xizhi to Yilan. These regional layouts are highly intertwined with the AI industry chain, predicting that all parts of Taiwan will become pivotal points for AI technology in the future.
Towards an AI Island: Semiconductors Are Taiwan’s Backbone
As global AI accelerates its evolution, Taiwan, through breakthroughs in silicon photonics technology and a solid semiconductor industry foundation, is not only strengthening its national competitiveness but also demonstrating its ambition to become a core global AI hub. The future vision of an “AI Island” is steadily progressing based on these seemingly intangible but strategically valuable technological infrastructures.
Data Source: National Science and Technology Council
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