TSMC’s board of directors approved on Tuesday, November 10, investments of up to $1 billion in the two leading US AI labs: no more than $500 million in Anthropic common shares bought at Anthropic’s IPO price, and no more than $500 million in OpenAI preferred stock. The world’s largest contract chipmaker disclosed the decision in its board resolutions, which also cleared about $40.93 billion in new capital spending and a separate investment company of up to $500 million. It comes days before Anthropic is due to price its listing.

What TSMC’s board approved

The approvals are the fifth of TSMC’s resolutions from the Hsinchu meeting:

  • Anthropic, PBC: common shares bought at the per-share initial public offering price, for an amount that may not exceed $500 million.
  • OpenAI Group PBC: preferred stock, again capped at $500 million.

Both figures are ceilings rather than completed purchases. TSMC did not say how many shares it will buy, what stake it would end up holding or when either deal would close, as TechNode Global and Dataconomy point out, and it gave no price or valuation for the OpenAI stock.

The same meeting approved a new investment company, funded with up to $500 million, to make strategic investments in the semiconductor industry and its wider ecosystem. It also approved third-quarter net income of NT$763.06 billion and a NT$9 per-share cash dividend, which the Taipei Times calls a record.

How the stake fits Anthropic’s IPO

The Anthropic half lines up with the offering we covered on Wednesday. In our report on the Anthropic IPO roadshow and its $70 to $78 price range, TechCrunch’s account of the updated filing listed TSMC among seven chip and cloud suppliers buying $26 billion of non-voting Class N stock at the IPO price, next to AMD, Broadcom, Google, Micron, Microsoft and Nvidia. Only Google’s and Nvidia’s shares, $10 billion each, were broken out. TSMC’s resolution does not mention the placement, but the terms match, which would make this the first figure for TSMC’s part.

At $70 a share, $500 million buys about 7.1 million shares; at $78, about 6.4 million. That is small next to the 825 million Class A shares on offer to the public.

OpenAI’s side of the deal

The OpenAI investment is less clear. TSMC is buying preferred stock, the usual instrument of private funding rounds, but the resolution names no round. OpenAI is raising money privately: as we reported when OpenAI cut its funding target to $20 billion, Bloomberg said about $11 billion had come in at a $1.25 trillion valuation. Whether TSMC’s money joins that round or a later one is not stated.

A supplier buying into its customers

TSMC is following a pattern that has become common in AI. Suppliers put money into the companies that buy their products, and some of that money comes back as orders. Nvidia committed $3 billion to Meta’s stock offering while Meta widened its use of Nvidia hardware, and Nvidia and Google are each putting $10 billion into the Anthropic placement. Critics call this circular financing.

Exterior of TSMC's Fab 18 chip plant in the Southern Taiwan Science Park
TSMC's Fab 18 in southern Taiwan; the foundry makes the advanced chips that Nvidia, Google, AMD and Broadcom sell to AI labs. Photo: 4300streetcar / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0

For TSMC the link is indirect: it makes chips for Nvidia, Google, AMD and Broadcom, which then supply the labs. MacRumors notes that both labs are working on their own processors and are competing with Apple, whose custom chips TSMC also makes, for its most advanced capacity. Taipei Times cites analysts who read the stakes as a sign of TSMC’s confidence in AI demand.

It is not TSMC’s first equity bet on a key partner. Dataconomy recalls that it bought about 5% of lithography supplier ASML in 2012 and took a stake in Arm at its 2023 IPO. The two AI ceilings together are under 3% of the capital budget the same board approved.

What to watch next

  • Anthropic’s pricing, expected on November 18, which will set how many shares TSMC’s $500 million buys.
  • Whether TSMC or OpenAI discloses the price, valuation or closing date for the preferred stock.
  • The name, structure and first deals of TSMC’s new investment company.
  • Any filings showing TSMC’s holdings once the Anthropic offering closes.

Key takeaways

  • TSMC’s board approved up to $500 million for Anthropic common shares at the IPO price and up to $500 million for OpenAI preferred stock.
  • The amounts are caps; share counts, stakes and closing dates were not disclosed.
  • The Anthropic stake matches TSMC’s reported role in the $26 billion supplier placement at the IPO price.
  • The board also approved about $40.93 billion in capital spending, a NT$9 dividend and a new investment company of up to $500 million.

Frequently asked questions

How much is TSMC investing in Anthropic and OpenAI?

Up to $1 billion in total, split evenly with no more than $500 million for each company. These are board limits, not completed purchases.

What kind of shares is TSMC buying?

TSMC will buy Anthropic common shares at the per-share price of Anthropic’s initial public offering, and preferred stock in OpenAI Group PBC. TSMC has not disclosed a price or valuation for the OpenAI shares.

When will TSMC’s Anthropic investment happen?

It is tied to Anthropic’s IPO, which is expected to price on November 18, 2026. TSMC has not given a closing date for either investment.