Why Taiwan Didn’t Steal America’s Chip Industry (Pt. 1: Geoeconomic History)

Political rhetoric often relies on simple villains, and few narratives are as convenient — or as fundamentally flawed — as the claim that Taiwan "stole" America’s semiconductor industry. In a new three-part mini-series of Strait Forward, host Channing Lee seeks to debunk this myth by examining how and why Taiwan built its chip industry, and how Taiwan’s emergence as a manufacturing powerhouse enabled America to unleash its innovation power. This first episode featuring Dr. Roy Lee, formerly Taiwan's Representative to the EU and Belgium and Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, explores the geopolitical and economic conditions that created the urgency — and opportunity — for Taiwan to become the world’s chip hub. Contrary to the narrative of theft, Taiwan’s semiconductor success resulted from a deliberate, 45-year strategic partnership built on mutual survival, risk-taking, and shared security imperatives between Washington and Taipei. Strait Forward is a podcast by the Special Competitive Studies Project.