On October 21st, a tragic accident unfolded at TSMC’s Kaohsiung plant, claiming the lives of four workers and subsequently prompting the partial suspension of construction activities. TSMC reported that the incident took place on a Tuesday as workers were in the process of constructing a steel framework. Local media outlets have indicated that the workers fell from an elevated position while engaged in welding steel beams. In response, TSMC has not only ceased construction at the Kaohsiung site but has also suspended similar construction projects across all its facilities in Taiwan, fully cooperating with the ongoing investigation to determine the accident’s cause. This marks the most severe incident at TSMC’s Kaohsiung plant since construction commenced. The accident comes at a time when TSMC is actively ramping up its production capacity to keep pace with the soaring demand for cutting-edge chips in the burgeoning artificial intelligence sector.