Taiwan's Ministry of Digital Affairs (MoDA) recently announced that it has secured a NT$10 billion (US$317.5 million; US$1=NT$31.5) budget for the "Enhanced Investment in AI Startups Program" from the National Development Council (NDC), the Economic Daily News reported on August 28. The investment scope includes generative AI and discriminative AI, with the plan currently set to span ten years. The program will leverage the National Development Fund (NDF) in conjunction with private investors, with applications expected to open as early as the beginning of next year.
The NDF has previously undertaken similar initiatives, but this new plan will specifically focus on AI startups. The investment targets include domestic AI startups and companies related to the digital economy, covering areas such as discriminative AI and generative AI.
MoDA is focusing on four key areas: computational power, data, talent, and capital. The ministry is also building a "computational power pool," aiming to subsidize 60 companies this year by offering six weeks of free usage to help them develop their own AI applications.
With AI becoming a significant focus in recent years, Taipei-based research institute Market Intelligence & Consulting Institute (MIC) has been dedicated to exploring the latest developments in PCs, smartphones, and servers with built-in AI chips. MIC estimates that the global share of AI PCs will increase from around 15.7% in 2024 to nearly 66% in 2027, while the global share of AI servers is expected to rise from 15.9% in 2024 to 21.1% in 2027. Meanwhile, the global share of AI smartphones is projected to grow from 11% in 2024 to 42% in 2027, according to MIC.