President Tsai meets Applied Materials Board of Directors
President Tsai Ing-wen met with a delegation from the Applied Materials Board of Directors on the morning of June 6. She thanked Applied Materials for establishing strong roots in Taiwan and emphasized that we will turn Taiwan into a prime investment choice amidst the US-China trade dispute.
In remarks, President Tsai stated that she was happy to meet with Applied Materials President and CEO Gary Dickerson once again. She then warmly welcomed Chairman Thomas Iannotti and the other members of the Applied Materials team who had traveled so far to Taiwan. Applied Materials has been expanding its investments and operations in Taiwan for years. She congratulated Applied Materials on the opening of its new Tainan Display Equipment Manufacturing Center and R&D laboratory just the day before. The company will also hold a Board of Directors meeting in Taiwan for the first time in more than 10 years, further testament to how much they value their investments here.
The president pointed out that Applied Materials is a global leader in the semiconductor equipment industry, with R&D investments totaling more than US$2 billion last year. And this year, Applied Materials was named among the World's Most Admired Companies by FORTUNE magazine, making them one of the industry's greatest success stories.
President Tsai pointed out that Taiwan boasts the world's most complete semiconductor industry clusters, an abundance of tech talents, and superior manufacturing capabilities. Over the past three years, she said, we have worked to relax regulations and improve our investment climate as well. The purpose of all of our efforts, she said, is to turn Taiwan into a prime investment choice amidst the US-China trade dispute.
The president emphasized that Taiwan's close partnership with Applied Materials has helped spur mutual growth. In the 30 years since Applied Materials established operations in Taiwan, they have introduced advanced technologies and equipment, and jointly developed innovative applications with their Taiwanese counterparts. And this new plant in Tainan is the world's first combined display equipment manufacturing plant and R&D laboratory.
In closing, President Tsai thanked Applied Materials for establishing strong roots in Taiwan, and expressed hope that we can create even more opportunities for development together. She welcomed her visitors to Taiwan once again, and wished them a smooth, productive and enjoyable visit.