Morris Chang, the 94-year-old founder of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (NYSE:TSM), made his first public appearance in more than a year with a private dinner alongside Nvidia Corp (NASDAQ:NVDA) CEO Jensen Huang.
Chang Ends Year-Long Public Hiatus
Chang, who had been notably absent from public events throughout 2025, skipped key gatherings, including TSMC’s annual Sports Day, an event where he often shared reflections on the semiconductor sector, reported Digitimes Asia.
His absence fueled speculation about his health, making his recent Taipei appearance a moment of significant industry interest.
In 2025, Chang’s only public contribution was his voice in a joint Nvidia–TSMC video marking the launch of Blackwell chip production at TSMC’s Arizona facility.
He did not appear on camera but opened the video with a statement highlighting his longstanding dream: “When I started TSMC … I had a dream to build fabs in the United States, and my dream lives.”
The project represents a $165 billion investment in U.S. semiconductor manufacturing.
Age Shows, But Mind Remains Sharp
On Thursday, Chang arrived at the Cantonese restaurant in a wheelchair.
Huang reassured reporters that Chang remains mentally sharp and in good spirits, adding that their conversation was as incisive as ever.
“He’s getting stronger, but his spirit is high, and his mind is so sharp. Talking to Morris always makes you very sharp,” Huang said.
Following the dinner, Huang is set to attend the Nvidia Taiwan year-end banquet and host events with supply chain partners.
Huang: TSMC Remains World’s Top Foundry
Earlier in the day, after landing in Taiwan, Huang dismissed concerns that the U.S. has absorbed roughly 40% of Taiwan’s semiconductor manufacturing capacity, saying global chip production is expanding rather than shifting.
He said new capacity is being added in the U.S., Europe, and Japan, while Taiwan remains the industry’s central manufacturing hub.
Huang called TSMC the world’s premier foundry partner, pointing to its technology leadership, execution, and flexibility.
He added that TSMC will need to sharply scale capacity over the next decade, with the bulk of production remaining in Taiwan even as the company expands overseas.
Price Action: Nvidia shares fell 0.49% in after-hours trading to $190.20, according to Benzinga Pro. In the past 12 months, Nvidia shares have been up by 59.18%.
Despite the dip, the stock maintains a strong Quality rating in Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings, backed by a positive price trend across short, medium and long-term time frames.
Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
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