Morris Chang is the engineer responsible for turning Taiwan into a semiconductor manufacturing powerhouse. The Taiwanese-American was enjoying a successful career at Texas Instruments, running its semiconductor division in the United States, when he was passed over for the top job. And so, after 25 years at TI, Chang resigned. But as one door closed, a bigger one opened: the Taiwanese government called on him to help modernise Taiwan’s tech industry.

In 1987, Chang established Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company during a time when firms were beginning to outsource their manufacturing to Asia. TSMC specialized in wafer manufacturing, and it was the first of its kind. Today, the company is the largest silicon foundry in the world, and its chips are found in all types of electronics from computers to cell phones and car navigation systems.

Chang, known as the “godfather of Taiwan’s semiconductor industry,” was an APEC representative in 2006, 2018, 2019, and 2021. He was ranked 20th on Forbes’ list of Taiwan’s 50 billionaires in 2022, with net assets of US$2.6 billion.