logo
episode-header-image
Sep 2023
48m 30s

Silicon Island (2022)

NPR
About this episode
In a world where computer chips run everything from laptops to cars to the Nintendo Switch, Taiwan is the undisputed leader. It's one of the most powerful tech centers in the world — so powerful that both China and the U.S. have vital interests there. But if you went back to the Taiwan of the 1950s, this would have seemed unimaginable. It was a quiet, sleepy island; an agrarian culture. Fifty years later, it experienced what many recall as an "economic miracle" — a transformation into not just one of Asia's economic powerhouses, but one of the world's.

See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

NPR Privacy Policy
Up next
Aug 6
Lies, theft, and cover-up: the history of Monopoly you've never heard
Monopoly is one of the best-selling board games of all time. It heralds free market economics and celebrates the American dream. That's a far cry from the original intent. This week on our series Hidden Histories, we go back in time to reveal the swindling and cover ups that robb ... Show More
49m 49s
Aug 4
The song that fueled protests and a legacy of hope
In our final installment of AP250, how We Shall Overcome became the anthem of generations of protestors. Today on the show, we revisit an episode from the NPR archives about the legacy of hope found in the lyrics of this timeless song. Support public media with NPR+ and enjoy per ... Show More
19m 26s
Jul 30
The lightbulb conspiracy is both real and everywhere
Over the next few episodes, we present Hidden Histories: stories that will make you rethink how the world works. First up, the conspiracy behind the lightbulb—and how it came to shape the entire consumer economy. If you ever wondered why your tech outdates so quickly or just plai ... Show More
31m 49s
Recommended Episodes
Jul 2024
Taiwan’s 100-Year Rise From Japanese Colony to Monopoly Producer of Microchips
When global supply chains were shut down in 2020 and messily rebooted after COVID lockdowns ceased, one island nation emerged as the most important player in getting critical components to factories around the world. That was Taiwan, which produces 90 percent of the world’s advan ... Show More
43m 5s
Jul 2023
Taiwan is More Than Microchips and Tensions With China
When people think of Taiwan, they mostly think of tensions with China and the fact that Taiwan is a major manufacturing centre for the world's semiconductors. But Taiwan's leaders actually made some big bets decades ago that are paying off now, with a GDP per capita roughly 3 tim ... Show More
15m 28s
Nov 2024
The geopolitics of chips: Taiwan’s ‘Silicon Shield’
<p>The global tech industry depends on Taiwan’s semiconductor chips and many believe the sector plays a key role in the island’s national security, helping stave off an invasion from mainland China. But as relations between China and Taiwan worsen, some countries are taking steps ... Show More
22m 45s
Sep 2021
TSMC
We dive into the unbelievable and unlikely history behind the quietest technology giant of them all: the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company. Founded in 1987 by the then-56 year old Morris Chang, already a legend in the semiconductor industry by virtue of his meteoric rise ... Show More
2h 21m
Nov 2024
The geopolitics of chips: A manufacturing miracle
<p>Semiconductors are one of the most complex and technically difficult pieces of hardware to make in the world – which is why they’ve become a flashpoint for tensions between the US and China. For years, semiconductor technology has advanced at a breakneck pace - but there are s ... Show More
31m 10s
Nov 2025
The Wubi Effect
<p>When we think of China today, we think of a technological superpower. From Huawei and 5G to TikTok and viral social media, China is stride for stride with the United States in the world of computing. However, China’s technological renaissance almost didn’t happen. And for one ... Show More
56m 51s
Aug 2020
The Wubi Effect
<p>When we think of China today, we think of a technological superpower. From Huawei and 5G to TikTok and viral social media, China is stride for stride with the United States in the world of computing. However, China’s technological renaissance almost didn’t happen. And for one ... Show More
55m 10s
May 2024
William Hague on Taiwan and the fight for the world’s most critical technology
Our modern world is built on chips; they control everything from our cars to the stock market, dishwashers to missile systems, computers to - potentially soon - augmented humans. But with China and America battling for control over production - and about ninety percent of advance ... Show More
25m 55s