Morris Chang
Taiwanese businessman; founder and former chairman of TSMC
| Morris Chang
| |
|---|---|
| Image | .jpg) Chang in 2021 |
| Born | 10 July 1931 (Forbes) |
| Nationality | Taiwanese |
| Residence | Hsinchu (Forbes) |
| Occupation | Businessman (retired) |
| Known for | Founder of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) |
| Education | Massachusetts Institute of Technology (mechanical engineering); Stanford University (PhD, electrical engineering) (Forbes) |
Morris Chang (born 10 July 1931) is a Taiwanese businessman who founded Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC), one of the world's largest chipmakers, in 1987. He retired as chairman in June 2018.[1][2] On 12 November 2026 the Forbes Real-Time Billionaires list ranked Chang 395th in the world, with an estimated net worth of US$9.3 billion; Forbes lists the source of wealth as semiconductors.[1][3] In the annual World's Billionaires list published in 2026, Forbes had ranked Chang 422nd, at US$8.4 billion.[4]
Career
Forbes says Chang studied mechanical engineering at MIT and earned a PhD in electrical engineering at Stanford.[1] He worked at Texas Instruments for about 25 years before joining the Taiwanese research body that spun off TSMC.[1] He founded TSMC in 1987. A decade later it became the first Taiwanese company to trade on the New York Stock Exchange.[1]
Retirement
On 2 October 2017 Chang announced that he would retire after TSMC's annual shareholders' meeting in June 2018, would not serve on the next board and would take no further part in management.[2] TSMC said the company would then be led by Mark Liu as chairman and C. C. Wei as chief executive. On 5 June 2018 shareholders elected the 14th board, which chose Liu as chairman and Wei as chief executive and vice chairman.[2][5]
TSMC since 2018
Forbes says TSMC's customers include Apple, Nvidia and Qualcomm. It says the company is building a US$165 billion site with three chip plants in Phoenix, Arizona.[1] In 2024 TSMC broke ground on a factory in Dresden, Germany, its first in Europe, committing US$3.8 billion for a 70% stake in the joint venture.[1]
Wealth history
Forbes has included this entry in its annual World's Billionaires list in 9 of the editions from 2001 to 2026 checked for this profile, starting with 2018. The table gives the rank and estimated net worth in each annual list.[4][1]
| Year | World's Billionaires rank | Net worth (US$ bn) |
|---|---|---|
| 2018 | 2124 | 1.0 |
| 2019 | 2057 | 1.0 |
| 2020 | 1730 | 1.2 |
| 2021 | 1111 | 2.8 |
| 2022 | 1163 | 2.7 |
| 2023 | 1312 | 2.3 |
| 2024 | 949 | 3.4 |
| 2025 | 887 | 4.1 |
| 2026 | 422 | 8.4 |
International and political links
This section uses the same ten headings for every profile in this series. Only specific, sourced actions are included; company-level and foundation-level actions are labelled as such. Where nothing was found, the entry reads "No documented involvement found in sources checked."
Israel (investments, operations, donations, contracts, statements)
No documented involvement found in sources checked.
Zionist or pro-Israel organisations and lobbying groups
No documented involvement found in sources checked.
Jewish communal charities
No documented involvement found in sources checked.
Gulf states
No documented involvement found in sources checked.
China
No documented involvement found in sources checked.
Russia
No documented involvement found in sources checked.
India
No documented involvement found in sources checked.
Palestinian or Arab causes
No documented involvement found in sources checked.
Home government
Chang's fortune derives from TSMC, which is based in Taiwan.[1]
Other international links
No documented involvement found in sources checked.
Notes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.8 Forbes, Forbes profile record for Morris Chang (Forbes data feed behind forbes.com/profile/morris-chang/) Forbes, live record, read 12 November 2026, accessed 12 November 2026.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 TSMC, TSMC Dr. Morris Chang Announces Retirement in June 2018. Future Dual Leadership Will Be Mark Liu as Chairman And C.C. Wei as CEO. TSMC, 2 October 2017, accessed 12 November 2026.
- ↑ Forbes, Forbes Real-Time Billionaires data feed Forbes, live; downloaded 12 November 2026 09:42 UTC, accessed 12 November 2026.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Forbes, Forbes World's Billionaires list data feed, annual editions 2001–2026 (one file per year at this path with the year substituted; all 26 files downloaded and read) Forbes, annual lists; downloaded 20 October 2026, accessed 12 November 2026.
- ↑ TSMC, TSMC Shareholders Approve NT$8 Cash Dividend and Elect Board of Directors; Board of Directors Elect Mark Liu as Chairman and C.C. Wei as CEO and Vice Chairman TSMC, 5 June 2018, accessed 12 November 2026.