TSMC Dismisses Sam Altman’s $7 Trillion Chip Fabrication Proposal: The Podcasting Bro's Unveiled Vision

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman may be a familiar figure among Silicon Valley's venture capitalists, but executives at Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) aren't impressed. A recent report from The New York Times revealed that TSMC leadership dismissed Altman as a “podcasting bro,” openly ridiculing his ambitious $7 trillion proposal to establish 36 new chip manufacturing plants and AI data centers. This development follows Altman’s challenging PR tour of Asian chip manufacturers last winter, where he sought investment for OpenAI’s artificial general intelligence aspirations by meeting with Samsung, SK Hynix, and TSMC. According to the report, TSMC executives were particularly skeptical of Altman’s monumental funding request.

Although Altman has yet to confirm his plans for chip manufacturing, his vision appears to be one of positioning OpenAI to compete with industry giants like Nvidia and TSMC by designing and fabricating its own chipsets. This investment strategy would unfold over several years as production capacities expand. However, TSMC leaders questioned how they could effectively manage the financial risks tied to such an endeavor.

This is not the first instance of TSMC casting doubt on OpenAI. In a 2024 Annual Shareholders Meeting, TSMC founder and CEO Dr. C. C. Wei described Altman as "too aggressive, too aggressive for me to believe." Despite these challenges, OpenAI has attracted considerable interest from investors. In 2023, the company secured a whopping $13 billion investment from Microsoft and is reportedly nearing an additional $6.5 billion funding round expected to close soon. Furthermore, OpenAI is rumored to be transitioning from a nonprofit model to a for-profit structure to heighten its appeal to investors.

However, according to a Wall Street Journal report, OpenAI is facing significant financial strain, losing nearly double its stated annual income of $4 billion, accumulating losses of around $7 billion each year. Additionally, the company's executive team has seen considerable turnover, with CTO Mira Murati, CRO Bob McGrew, and senior research executive Barret Zoph all resigning earlier this week—adding to investors’ unease.