Recently, Peter S. Goodman, a journalist with The New York Times, penned an article that offers a profound exploration of the challenges TSMC has encountered while constructing factories in the United States. These hurdles encompass soaring manufacturing expenses, an intricate web of regulatory approval procedures, an industrial ecosystem that proves difficult to replicate, as well as labor and cultural clashes, all of which have repeatedly impeded TSMC's progress.

When embarking on the construction of a factory in Arizona, TSMC finds itself having to maneuver through a labyrinth of regulations at the city, county, state, and federal levels. Critical equipment and pipeline installations necessitate the acquisition of hundreds of permits. In certain locales, TSMC is even compelled to devise 18,000 regulatory clauses on its own, with the associated costs soaring to as much as $35 million.

Simultaneously, there exists a dearth of skilled industrial workers in the local area, prompting TSMC to send workers from Taiwan, China. This move, however, has ignited tensions with labor unions and given rise to cultural conflicts. Furthermore, problems such as water scarcity and exorbitant energy costs have only served to intensify TSMC's predicament.