On Oct. 17, executives and employees gathered at TSMC Arizona to commemorate the production of the first NVIDIA Blackwell wafer made on American soil. These highly advanced chips are manufactured using a custom TSMC N4P process and will be foundational infrastructure as AI usage proliferates in the coming years.  

David Keller, CEO of TSMC North America, told the crowd that thousands of Blackwell chips will be rolling off the manufacturing line in Arizona, adding that the surge of AI demand was “one of the key drivers of expansion in Arizona and globally.”  

Jensen Huang, president and CEO of NVIDIA, describes AI as “the most transformative invention in the history of mankind” and that the technology will be used by every industry in the near future. To meet this demand, NVIDIA plans to spend $500 billion over the next several years on AI infrastructure.

The relationship between TSMC and NVIDIA stretches back nearly three decades, with Huang saying that the two companies “grew up together.” He remembers when TSMC was less than a $1 billion company — quipping that the company has probably earned $1 billion during his time on stage.  

Throughout his remarks, Huang highlighted the importance of the U.S. being at the forefront of AI “at all layers,” which will require the strengthening of domestic supply chains. Blackwell systems — which connect 72 Blackwell GPUs and 36 NVIDIA Grace CPUs — are the first AI supercomputers designed and built for reasoning. Huang adds that these supercomputers weigh two tons and contain more than a million individual parts.  

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The production of Blackwell wafers at TSMC is a “historic moment,” Huang says, marking the first time in recent U.S. history that leading chips are being manufactured stateside. One of the reasons this is possible is thanks to the speed at which TSMC Arizona built its initial fab — something that could only be achieved thanks to the support of public and private partners, with Keller adding that the State of Arizona “rolled out the red carpet for us.”  

To mark the occasion, leaders from TSMC and NVIDIA gathered to sign the first U.S.-made Blackwell wafer. In closing, Huang reiterated the significance of TSMC Arizona building the most advanced manufacturing facility in America in just two years — “TSMC is a miracle machine.”