This week, we track three pivotal forces shaping the global innovation narrative.

Washington’s Shutdown has paralyzed U.S. federal agencies, disrupting capital markets and research while costing the economy up to $15 billion a week, underscoring how fragile high-tech growth becomes when governance stalls.

Taiwan–U.S. High-Tech Partnership is emerging as a strategic framework for resilient supply chains and shared R&D in semiconductors and AI, offering a “Taiwan model” that balances collaboration with technological sovereignty.

The AI Workforce Shift is accelerating as more than 120,000 global layoffs redefine work in the automation era, where efficiency metrics now favor algorithms over headcount.

This week, we take a closer look at two stories shaping the global innovation narrative from opposite sides of the Pacific.

Taiwan Tech Week 2025: From Semiconductor Island to Innovation Island
Taiwan brought more than 120 startups and 3,500 professionals to Silicon Valley in its boldest overseas showcase yet. The Taiwan Tech Summit at Santa Clara Convention Center signaled a shift in identity, positioning Taiwan as an Innovation Island with ambitions in AI, biotech, and deep tech, while building new bridges with the global ecosystem.

San Francisco Tech Week 2025: A City Reclaims Its Innovation Role
From September 15 to 21, San Francisco will host hundreds of events across the city, from AI and biotech forums to climate tech gatherings and neighborhood mixers. Tech Week 2025 is both a celebration and a test, as the city seeks to reassert itself as the epicenter of innovation culture in a world of rising global competition.

This week, we spotlight Jim Keller’s decision to bring Tenstorrent to Taiwan, and preview the Taipei Aerospace & Defense Technology Exhibition (TADTE 2025)—two stories that highlight Taiwan’s expanding influence at the cutting edge of global technology.

Jim Keller and Tenstorrent: Betting on Taiwan
At SEMICON Taiwan 2025, legendary chip architect Jim Keller—known for breakthroughs at Apple, AMD, and Tesla—announced that his company Tenstorrent will open a new office in Taiwan. The move underscores Taiwan’s unrivaled semiconductor supply chain and engineering talent, as Tenstorrent pushes chiplet-based AI processors to challenge NVIDIA’s dominance. Beyond business expansion, Keller’s strategy represents a vision of democratizing AI compute through affordable, flexible, and open architectures.

TADTE 2025: Innovation and International Collaboration
Opening this September at the Taipei Nangang Exhibition Center, TADTE 2025 will bring together more than 400 exhibitors from over a dozen countries. With themes spanning advanced defense, green aviation, resilient supply chains, and unmanned systems, the exhibition positions Taiwan as a hub for aerospace innovation and cross-border cooperation. By showcasing both local breakthroughs and global partnerships, TADTE affirms Taiwan’s role as not just a manufacturing base, but a co-creator of the future of defense and aerospace technology.