SoftBank pitches US$1 trillion US AI, robot hub to TSMC, Trump team, with eyes on Arizona
Son envisions a version of the vast manufacturing hub of China's Shenzhen that would bring back high-tech manufacturing to the US, according to people familiar with the billionaire's thinking. The park may comprise production lines for AI-powered industrial robots, they said, asking not to be named as the plan remains private.
SoftBank officials are keen to have the Taiwanese maker of
Nvidia 's advanced AI chips play a prominent role in the project, although it's not clear what part Son sees for TSMC, which already plans to invest US$165 billion in the US and has started mass production at its first Arizona factory. Nor is it clear that TSMC would be interested. A person familiar with the chipmaker's thinking said that SoftBank's project has no bearing on TSMC's plans in Phoenix.
Shares of SoftBank jumped as much as 2.3 per cent in Tokyo on Friday. TSMC's stock price rose 1.9 per cent in Taipei.
Code-named 'Project Crystal Land', the Arizona complex represents the 67-year-old SoftBank chief's most ambitious attempt in a career that's spanned numerous bet-the-house bids, thousands-fold returns and billions of dollars in losses. Son, who's often expressed disappointment in his own legacy, has repeatedly said he means to do everything he can to hurry AI development.
TSMC's new plant in Phoenix under construction in January 2023. Photo: Matt Haldane
SoftBank officials have spoken with federal and state government officials to discuss possible tax breaks for companies building factories or otherwise investing in the industrial park, including talks with US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick, the people said.
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