Cluster of Talents for Highly skilled Engineering and Research Fuels Investment

The country's 75 universities and research institutions educate more than 8,000 engineers annually. In Taiwan, engineers generally enjoy high social status and as a result, the best students choose to study engineering.

There are many research institutions, mostly set up by the government, universities, or sponsored by local conglomerates. Among them, the most prominent research institution is The Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI). Over time, ITRI became a great source of talented people. Since its establishment in 1973, over 13,000 employees have graduated from the portals of ITRI, 76% of whom joined private industries, especially the semiconductor industries. In fact, many successful managers such as Morris Chang (chairman, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Corporation) and Robert Tsao (chairman, United Microelectronics Corporation) in the semiconductor industries originated from ITRI.

Many successful companies spin off from ITRI. Following the transfer of seven-micron CMOS IC processing and design technology from RCA (Radio Corporation of America), ITRI established the foundations of Taiwan's semiconductor industry. Fueled by continuous technology transfers, spin-off IC companies such as UMC, TSMC, TMC, and VISC attracted over $3.6 billion in investments in IC wafer manufacturing. Numerous IC design and testing companies were also established. With total production value of $8.6 billion in 1998, Taiwan is the fourth-largest IC supplier in the world. ^[1]

ITRI has been instrumental to the success of Taiwan's economy. As a government sponsored institution, it pioneers into high-risk industries that most private enterprises would avoid. It is also an incubator to nurture engineers and scientists for the various industries in Taiwan. It was so successful that many countries in the region have established similar research institutions to fuel the growth of new technology and entrepreneurship. One example is the Kent Ridge Digital Labs in Singapore.