Thailand intensifies push for US semiconductor investment

Narit Therdsteerasukdi, secretary-general of the Board of Investment (BOI), said Ekniti Nitithanprapas, Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister, led Team Thailand on a visit to Washington, D.C., in the United States from April 13–17, 2026, to attend the IMF-World Bank Spring Meetings 2026, while also expanding cooperation with partner countries and leading economic organisations and holding talks to attract investment from target companies in advanced technology industries, particularly semiconductors, which are growing rapidly as demand surges in response to AI technology.

The global semiconductor market is expected to exceed US$1 trillion by the end of 2026, four years earlier than previously forecast by the Semiconductor Association, and it is regarded as a new-generation industry in which countries are competing for investment to strengthen competitiveness and technological security, while also creating added value and supporting the development of other core domestic industries.

The United States is the centre of the global semiconductor industry, holding the key technologies and accounting for more than half of the global chip market revenue.

During this visit, the deputy prime minister and the BOI secretary-general therefore moved proactively to discuss investment plans with three leading companies in the semiconductor industry in order to build confidence and invite them to expand investment in Thailand, especially in upstream chips, while also building cooperation in developing Thai personnel and entrepreneurs.

The first was Phononic, a manufacturer of temperature-control chips (cooling chips), a highly precise and energy-efficient technology that plays an important role in today’s digital industries, as heat has become one of the main constraints on advanced processing systems, especially AI technology.

Phononic has chosen Thailand as its main production base through joint ventures with three companies in Thailand, including a Thai company.

Over the past 18 months, it has already invested more than THB3 billion and has been officially selected as a manufacturer of components for NVIDIA’s processing systems.

The company is now preparing to relocate additional upstream semiconductor materials production from the United States to Thailand by 2027, which will make Thailand the company’s fully integrated production base from upstream materials to finished products.

There is also a strong possibility that the company will bring research and development activities supporting the upstream segment to Thailand in the near future.

GlobalFoundries, the world’s fifth-largest chipmaker, specialises in manufacturing specific types of chips, such as chips for wireless communications systems, automotive electronics and electrical appliances, power management systems, and optical data connectivity for AI data centres.

The company believes Thailand is well prepared in many respects, including as a base for industries that require large volumes of chips, such as electric vehicles, electronics and data centres.

The deputy prime minister invited the company to consider investing in its next upstream chip plant (wafer fabrication) in Thailand, in addition to its existing operations in three countries: the United States, Germany and Singapore.

Teradyne, the world’s leading manufacturer of automated semiconductor test equipment (ATE), is also a leader in automation and robotics, with a market share of more than 50% in advanced processor chip testing.

Its major customers include Intel, Qualcomm, Texas Instruments, ADI, IBM and Samsung.

It currently has a regional office and customer service centre in Thailand and plans to engage more manufacturers and use more components in Thailand.

During the discussions, leaders in the semiconductor industry reflected Thailand’s strengths in many dimensions, including the quality of Thai personnel, the long-established supply chain in the electronics industry, strong downstream industries, clean energy potential, current political stability, and the BOI’s good services and facilitation.

In addition, investors expressed interest and offered recommendations on developing Thailand’s capital market as a channel for raising funds for future investment expansion.

The deputy prime minister affirmed the readiness of the financial system, which has high liquidity, and said it is ready to support leading technology companies in using Thailand as a fund-raising base for future expansion.

In addition to the individual company meetings, the delegation also held talks with SEMI, the global semiconductor industry association, which connects businesses throughout the chip industry supply chain.

It has more than 4,000 member companies worldwide, plays an important role in driving policy and setting technical standards, and organises SEMICON events in several countries around the world, the largest gatherings of businesses in the semiconductor industry.

BOI joined SEMI as a member in March.

During this visit, the two sides discussed ways of working together to use SEMI’s network to reach global semiconductor companies, including jointly organising SEMICON in Thailand in the future to elevate Thailand’s role on the global stage.

The delegation also held talks with the US Chamber of Commerce (USCC), exchanging views with executives from leading companies such as Dow Chemical, Chevron, Netflix, PepsiCo, Visa and IBM, all of which have operating bases in Thailand.

The discussions were significant at the policy level, with the US private sector agreeing that Thailand is not merely a production base for exports back to the United States, but serves as a regional business hub.

This reflects Thailand’s strategic importance in the value chains of American companies in Asia.

The deputy prime minister presented the new government’s economic reform agenda, which places importance on removing investment obstacles, developing the customs system with digital technology, and developing workforce skills jointly with the private sector through BOI measures.

“The semiconductor industry is shaping the future of the global economy. Countries are currently competing intensely to attract investment in this industry. This trip is therefore extremely important because it links Thailand with the United States, which is the centre of technology and home to the world’s leading players, opening the way to investment and creating a new engine to drive the Thai economy in the future. Bringing the semiconductor industry into Thailand will benefit Thai people in many ways, including the creation of high-quality jobs with higher pay than traditional industries, whether chip design engineers, manufacturing process engineers or technicians in chip fabrication plants. It will also lead to support industries and related services in the country, such as electronics design businesses, raw material production, engineering services and machinery services. This will open opportunities for Thai entrepreneurs to enter the supply chains of leading global companies and help strengthen the country’s long-term economic security,” Narit said.

Overall investment from the United States in Thailand has continued to grow steadily.

Over the past five years (2021–2025), US investors filed a total of 232 applications for investment promotion worth more than THB220.3 billion, mostly in electronics and semiconductors, digital technology, food processing and biotechnology.

In 2025 alone, there were 60 projects worth a combined THB32.774 billion, with major projects from leading companies such as Lumentum, Microchip Technology and Fabrinet, reflecting US investors’ confidence in Thailand’s potential as a regional base for high-technology manufacturing.