ASU, Taiwan strengthen partnership ties
ASU President Michael Crow spoke at National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University during his visit to Taiwan last month. Like ASU, NYCU has expertise in semiconductors and also created one of the first biomedical engineering-based medical schools. ASU photo
As both Arizona State University and Taiwan have become major players in Arizona’s burgeoning semiconductor industry, the university has worked to nurture its ties to the island.
This fall, ASU President Michael Crow traveled to Taiwan to meet with top leaders in industry and education, as well as with ASU alumni.
“We talked about how ASU can partner and deliver workforce at scale for TSMC and other industry partners, as well as have a place for Taiwanese companies and innovations to grow in Arizona,” said Grace O’Sullivan, vice president of corporate engagement and strategic partnerships for ASU, who accompanied Crow to Taiwan.
ASU has seen an uptick of Sun Devils coming from Taiwan in recent years. Overall, 531 students from Taiwan studied at ASU in the 2024–25 academic year, an increase of more than 70% from 2021–22.
Also this fall, a delegation from Taiwan traveled to Arizona for SEMICON West, the flagship U.S. microelectronics trade show, held in Phoenix for the first time, and signed an agreement while they were here. ASU, the Arizona Commerce Authority, the city of Phoenix and Taiwan Digital Health Industry Development Association all signed a “declaration of collaboration” to promote Taiwanese companies in the U.S. and global markets with Arizona as a hub.
The signing also celebrated the opening of the Taiwan AI Smart Health Showcase Center, which features 15 innovative Taiwan-based health care companies, based in the 850 PBC building in the Phoenix Bioscience Core.
The agreement’s goals are to:
- Operate the showcase center to enable Taiwanese biomedical and medical device companies to land and grow in Arizona.
- Facilitate joint research and clinical trials with Arizona academic institutions and medical organizations.
- Assist companies in developing sales channels, strategic partnerships and investment opportunities across the U.S. and international markets.
- Provide guidance on government policies and regulatory requirements to help companies enter and grow in the U.S. market.
- Promote workforce development and exchanges between industries and academic institutions to build a network.
“Advancement in biomedical and medical device industries will not only drive innovation in patient care and scientific discovery, it will produce devices and therapies that will help treat chronic conditions and reduce health care costs,” Crow said at the signing.
“Arizona State University is excited to be part of this collaborative effort, working with partners in Arizona and Taiwan, to strengthen resilience in this important area of technological convergence.”
While in Taiwan, Crow met with the president and leadership team of National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University.
O’Sullivan said that ASU is comparable to NYCU, which not only has expertise in semiconductors but also created one of the first biomedical engineering-based medical schools, similar to ASU’s new John Shufeldt School of Medicine and Medical Engineering.
“We’re working toward building a comprehensive partnership with them, including a seed research fund and curriculum exchanges,” she said.
“We also met with the Ministry of Education and talked about building English and Mandarin language training, back and forth, to further support students and exchanges.”
A key part of Crow’s visit was meeting with the leadership team at TSMC, where he thanked them for their partnership with ASU, which is the No. 1 supplier of workers to them in Arizona.
“ASU’s partnership with TSMC and Taiwan fuses leading semiconductor innovation with bold research and scalable talent pipelines, which will be the foundation for our AI and quantum future,” O’Sullivan said.
“It’s a catalyst for U.S. leadership and will create trillions in global impact.”
The trip also included meetings with leadership from the Industrial Technology Research Institute, the Ministry of Economic Affairs and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the latter two highlighting ASU’s Innovation Zones as a catalyst for enhancing STEM research, education and development.
While in Asia, Crow traveled to South Korea, where he met with LG Energy Solution, which has invested $5.5 billion in battery manufacturing facilities in Queen Creek, Arizona; NAVER, the dominant search engine in South Korea; KRAFTON, one of the world’s largest video gaming companies; and education leaders.
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