Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company is evaluating a Texas location for additional semiconductor production capacity in the United States, the Traverse City Record-Eagle reported. The foundry has not disclosed investment value, planned wafer output, or process technology for the prospective Texas facility. The foundry operates additional fabrication facilities in Hsinchu, Tainan, and Kaohsiung across Taiwan, with Arizona and any Texas campus representing its first significant expansion outside the island.

What does the Texas exploration entail?

The report did not identify which Texas city TSMC is studying. The company has not confirmed whether negotiations have advanced beyond preliminary site review. Industry sources indicate site evaluations of this scope typically involve multi-year feasibility assessments covering water supply, workforce availability, state incentive packages, and proximity to existing supply chain partners.

The Texas project remains at an early evaluation stage. TSMC has not indicated whether the site would produce leading-edge logic devices or mature specialty nodes. Neither state nor local Texas officials have publicly announced an incentive package.

How does Texas fit the existing US footprint?

TSMC operates Fab 21 in Phoenix, the company's first US wafer fabrication facility. The Arizona complex broke ground in 2021. Production began in late 2024 on the N4 process node.

The company expanded its Arizona commitment in March 2025. TSMC announced a third Arizona fab at that time. Total Arizona commitment now reaches roughly $165 billion through that third facility. The second Arizona fab will produce chips on the N2 process beginning in 2028, with the third fab targeting sub-2-nanometer nodes in subsequent years.

A Texas facility would extend the US footprint beyond Phoenix. The expansion reflects sustained customer demand from US fabless chip designers and federal incentives under the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022.

Why does geographic diversification matter?

Major TSMC customers in the US include Apple, AMD, Nvidia, and Qualcomm. Each sources leading-edge logic chips from the foundry's Taiwan facilities. The geographic distribution of US chip production has emerged as a national security priority, with Congressional leaders and Commerce Department officials repeatedly citing Taiwan concentration risk in statements supporting federal semiconductor incentives.

Arizona production reduces reliance on Taiwan for advanced nodes. The Phoenix fab will produce chips designed in California and bound for American data centers. The geographic mix addresses supply chain risk concerns raised by US policymakers.

What does the Texas semiconductor landscape look like?

Texas Instruments, headquartered in Dallas, has manufactured analog semiconductors in the state since the 1950s, giving the state an unmatched domestic workforce of semiconductor engineers and technicians relative to Arizona's newer operations. Samsung Electronics operates a foundry in Austin, established decades ago. Samsung selected Taylor, Texas, in 2021 for a new foundry complex. The Korean company estimated initial investment at $17 billion. Samsung has pushed the production start from 2024 to 2026 or later. The Taylor fab will produce chips on 4-nanometer and 2-nanometer process nodes.

Intel has announced Ohio and Arizona expansions but has not selected a Texas site. State and local incentive packages vary widely between Texas and Arizona.

What unknowns remain?

TSMC has not disclosed investment total, wafer output capacity, process technology, or project schedule for the Texas project. The company has not named potential suppliers, equipment partners, or workforce partners. Equipment availability constrains TSMC's expansion timetable across every geography under consideration, with ASML, the dominant supplier of extreme ultraviolet lithography systems, carrying a multi-year order backlog from foundry customers worldwide.

TSMC executives have publicly cited challenges in transferring advanced process know-how to US-based engineering teams. Those transfer challenges have contributed to a Phoenix fab ramp timeline that has slipped multiple times since groundbreaking in 2021.

What comes next?

TSMC's Arizona complex anchors its current US production strategy. A confirmed Texas site would represent the first US expansion beyond Phoenix. Major foundry capacity announcements have historically preceded commercial wafer output by 18 to 36 months, indicating any Texas project would not yield production until late this decade.

The company typically announces major capacity decisions in formal disclosures or earnings calls. Investors will look for confirmation or denial of the Texas exploration in forthcoming communications from the foundry operator.