Taiwan chip companies hit by Covid-19: US Senate approves $250bn boost

World

Moving forward in leaps and bounds in the technological sector, the US has approved legislation that grants around US $250 billion to ramp up research and development in Artificial Intelligence, semiconductors, and quantum computing. The move is expected to give tough competition to China who is also striving towards the same goal.

The Senate Tuesday voted for the approval of the bill by a ratio of 68-32. The ratio is evidence of the fact that the legislation to surpass China blew past the partisan division in Congress. The commercial and military competition with Beijing is now one of the few issues that unite the democrats and the republicans in the US. US recognizes the increasing reliance on Taiwan for the chips and semiconductors. The bill comes at a time when Taiwan’s industries are badly hit due the COVID-19 pandemic.

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The bill is believed to be the most comprehensive industrial policy legislation in US’ history. The legislation allocates US $52 billion to the semiconductor industry. “Endless Frontier Act”, a part of the legislation, gives roughly US $120 billion for Artificial Intelligence and Quantum Computing technologies. The bill also includes the execution of a ban on TikTok, a popular Chinese-owned short video app.

The US has been at the front of dealing with various Chinese activities that threaten human integrity and world peace. Many politicians have introduced hundreds of bills enforcing the culpability of China regarding the brutal crackdowns on Uyghur Muslims. The US was the first country that termed the crackdowns a “genocide”, followed by the Netherlands and Canada. Now the US is realizing the importance of technology in competing with China and countering China’s influence over the world.