Taiwan cultivates young overseas chip talent with summer camps, university courses

FILE PHOTO: Students dressed in white protective suit and a face mask visit a clean room as part of a summer camp organised by U.S. chip designer Synopsys with the goal to attract more youth to Taiwan's semiconductor industry, in Hsinchu, Taiwan July 18, 2025. REUTERS/Ann Wang/ File Photo

TAIPEI (Reuters) -Dressed in a white protective suit and face mask, Nicolas Chueh listened intently as a guide introduced a series of silver machines used in manufacturing Taiwan's cutting-edge semiconductors.

The 16-year-old was among students from eight countries at the summer camp staged to raise interestin Taiwan's most vital industry amid a fast-declining birth rate that could leave tens of thousands of critical jobs vacant.