Jensen Huang couldn't get TSMC to return his calls. Then its founder called.

Jensen Huang couldn't get TSMC to return his calls. Then its founder called. By Huileng Tan You're currently following this author!

Click to unsubscribe from email alerts. Jensen Huang traced Nvidia's 30-year TSMC partnership to a letter he wrote to founder Morris Chang. Joel Saget/AFP/Getty Images Before Nvidia became an AI powerhouse, Jensen Huang was a startup founder struggling to get a Taiwanese chipmaker to return his calls.

The Nvidia CEO recalled how he first connected with Morris Chang, the founder of Taiwanese chipmaking giant TSMC, in a video with podcaster Lex Fridman published on Wednesday. It was the late 1990s, and Nvidia was looking for a manufacturer to produce its graphics chips. Foundry capacity was limited, and some foundries required companies to license their technology in exchange for access.

Huang had heard of TSMC, then a far smaller company than the chipmaking giant it is today, and decided to reach out. He found its US office number in the Yellow Pages, the telephone directory, and called. He reached a recording.

Huang left his contact details and explained what Nvidia was building. He tried several more times. "Nobody called me.

Nobody called me back," Huang said. He eventually wrote Chang a lengthy letter. After another long silence, Huang received an unexpected phone call one evening.

"This is Morris Chang from TSMC," the caller said, according to Huang. Meanwhile, Nvidia employees were playing video games nearby, laughing and shouting. "Hey, guys, shut up.

It's Morris Chang," Huang recalled telling them. Huang was thrilled that Chang had responded. "Maybe we won't have to die," Huang said.

Chang invited Huang to Taiwan, where he visited TSMC and rival United Microelectronics Corp. Huang said he was equally impressed by both companies but ultimately chose TSMC because of his conversations with Chang, who emphasized integrity, corporate governance, and long-term partnerships. "Jensen, if we were to work together, I promise you we would jump through hoops for you," Chang told him.

"For the whole time, 30 years, they've been jumping through hoops for us," Huang said. Today, TSMC manufactures Nvidia's advanced AI chips. Read next Business Insider tells the innovative stories you want to know Business Insider tells the innovative stories you want to know Business Insider tells the innovative stories you want to know Business Insider tells the innovative stories you want to know Huileng Tan You're currently following this author!

Click to unsubscribe from email alerts. Huileng Tan is a senior reporter based in Singapore, covering markets, the global economy, commodities, and investing. Her reporting focuses on how shifts in money, demographics, technology, and policy are reshaping businesses, wealth, and everyday life around the world.

Since joining Business Insider in 2021, she has covered everything from commodity booms and investor trends to China's economy, the AI trade, and the forces driving global markets. Before joining Business Insider, she reported for CNBC, Dow Jones, ICIS, and The Wall Street Journal. Reach her at htan@businessinsider.com .

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