Semiconductor Optimism as Naming Philosophy

“Then why do we call this industry the “semiconductor industry,” and not the “transistor industry”? In fact, in the 1950s the semiconductor industry was almost the same as the transistor industry, and indeed some people called it the transistor industry, but most practitioners still called it the semiconductor industry. Why? Because of technological optimism! Most of the industry believed that the transistor would not be the only invention based on semiconductors—there must be others. Sure enough, semiconductor lamps and semiconductor lasers followed one after another, and more importantly, the integrated circuit was invented in 1958. Today, integrated circuits already account for 85% of the semiconductor industry. The transistor, which dominated the scene forty years ago, accounts for only 5% of semiconductors.”

“Today, many people call Taiwan’s semiconductor industry the integrated-circuit industry. They are not wrong: the overwhelming majority of semiconductor manufacturers’ products are indeed integrated circuits. However, when it comes to the development of technology, I too am an incurable optimist. I firmly believe semiconductors are endlessly profound; integrated circuits are only their embodiment today. One day—perhaps in a few years, perhaps in a few decades—another invention based on semiconductors will appear. So I like this broader term: the semiconductor industry.”