The fourth AI Expo, organized by DIGITIMES, has officially kicked off. Taiwan's Vice President Bi-Khim Hsiao attended the event, while Minister of Economic Affairs J.W. Kuo delivered a speech during the opening ceremony. AI Fund managing general partner Andrew Ng, industry representatives from AWS, Microsoft, Etron, and Trend Micro were also present at the inauguration.
DIGITIMES president on US-China-Taiwan tech relations
In his opening remarks, DIGITIMES president Colley Hwang discussed his recent eight-day visit to the US, which included three speeches and meetings with senior executives from the semiconductor industry. Many people are concerned about the development of the US-China trade war and the trilateral relations between the US, China, and Taiwan.
Hwang analyzed the situation using a grid chart, stating that American tech giants hold market advantages, while China's actions and innovation plans are reshaping the market landscape. Meanwhile, Taiwan must optimize domestic demand and strengthen overall industrial competitiveness.
Taiwan's main industries include semiconductors, computers, servers, and mobile phone manufacturing, with the importance of industrial computers (IPC) increasing daily. Edge computing features a "rural encirclement of cities" characteristic, while the development of electric vehicles, drones, and robotics presents new opportunities for emerging industries.
Hwang also revealed that he had previously exchanged views with Ng, sharing his belief that "Taiwan not developing software may be a blessing rather than a curse." However, Ng disagreed, asserting that software is essential for creating greater value, suggesting more room for discussion on this topic.
Government initiatives to strengthen AI talent
Kuo remarked that Taiwan is at a critical moment in AI development, where talent is the core focus. The Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) is promoting various policy initiatives, including training 200,000 AI professionals across diverse sectors, attracting overseas talent, offering tax incentives, and hosting smart innovation awards to ensure Taiwan has sufficient AI expertise.
Organizations under the MOEA, such as Taiwan's Industrial Technology Research Institute and the Metal Industries R&D Center, are leading efforts to create AI application demonstration fields while encouraging collaboration between academia and industry.
Deputy Minister of Digital Affairs Yi-Jing Lin mentioned that to promote the development of private sector AI companies, the Ministry of Digital Affairs is collaborating with other government agencies to enhance infrastructure resources. This includes providing free computing resources to Taiwanese startups, with the government planning a NT$10 billion (approx. US$302.2 million) investment over ten years into local startups.
AI's future and workforce adaptation
After the opening ceremony, Ng conversed with Hsiao-Wei Hu, an associate professor at Chung Yuan Christian University. Ng noted that although Taiwan's population is relatively small, it possesses hardware manufacturing advantages, similar to many US startup teams consisting of only a handful of members. An increasing number of open-source models are appearing in the market, facilitating developers in quickly building and testing new products.
He stressed that despite many people's fears of AI replacing their jobs, now is actually a great time to learn programming. Understanding how to use AI tools and instructing computers on task execution will become crucial skills for the next generation.
Article edited by Jack Wu
