UT System and University Academic Alliance in Taiwan enter partnership agreement

AUSTIN, TEXAS – The University of Texas System today entered an agreement with the University Academic Alliance in Taiwan (UAAT) to promote research and discovery and provide collaborative educational opportunities for faculty and students at each respective institution. The agreement was established through a memorandum of understanding (MOU) signed by the UT System Chancellor James B. Milliken and President of National Taiwan University (NTU) Wen-Chang Chen and will advance collaboration in semiconductor research and manufacturing, and other related fields.

“This agreement will generate important opportunities for UT students’ academic endeavors while also strengthening the important work we have been doing to advance the semiconductor industry in the U.S.,” said Chancellor Milliken. “It is a privilege to join with higher education counterparts in Taiwan to advance collaborations in areas of mutual interest.”

The MOU allows for participation from all fourteen UT academic and health institutions and the 12 universities that comprise the University Academic Alliance in Taiwan. It is effective for five years with the option to be extended upon mutual agreement and outlines both parties’ intent to enter into agreements and collaborations associated with the priority fields of semiconductors, related technologies and talent development.

“This MOU will provide a strong foundation for strengthening academic exchange and cooperation between Taiwan and Texas,” said Political Deputy Minister of Education Dr. Mon-Chi Lio. “This is exciting and significant. We look forward to seeing the outcomes of collaboration between the institutions of The University of Texas System and the universities in the University Academic Alliance in Taiwan.”

“The establishment of the University Academic Alliance in Taiwan (UAAT) stems from the efforts of Taiwan’s Ministry of Education to promote forward-looking and collective academic cooperation with globally leading universities,” said President of NTU and convener of the UAAT Dr. Wen-Chang Chen. “The UT System and the State of Texas recently established the Texas Institute for Electronics (TIE) and the new 6G@UT Research Center to unite industry leaders and academic experts to lay the groundwork for the development of future technology and talents. In Taiwan, the UAAT is also active in these fields. We really look forward to the exciting synergy based on their core competencies and mutual interest, generating greater collaboration momentum in research and talent circulation.”

UT institutions are helping pioneer the resurgence of semiconductor manufacturing in the U.S. from overseas, specifically through the Texas Institute for Electronics (TIE), a public-private partnership, led by UT Austin, between the State of Texas, preeminent semiconductor systems and defense electronics companies, national labs and 13 other Texas academic institutions. TIE was established in 2022 and benefits from the passage of the federal CHIPS and Science Act of 2022 to stimulate increased advanced chip manufacturing in the U.S. Subsequently, the Texas CHIPS Act was signed by Gov. Greg Abbott in June 2023 which established the Texas Semiconductor Innovation Fund to encourage investment in chip design and manufacturing projects in Texas. The fund was appropriated $698 million from lawmakers, not including an additional $440 million to directly support the ongoing work of TIE at UT Austin.

Texas and Taiwan have a long history of strategic partnership in the semiconductor industry dating back to Texas Instruments’ investment in Taiwan in 1969. More recently, educational cooperation between Taiwan and the U.S. has increased, specifically with the U.S.-Taiwan Education Initiative Three-Year Strategic Plan, established in March 2023 to increase talent exchange and collaboration in the semiconductor industry, with the goal of expanding collaboration to other fields like engineering, science, medicine and others.

The following individuals spoke at the ceremony and were joined by other participants (both in person and virtually) from the UT System, the University Academic Alliance in Taiwan and the Taiwan Economic and Cultural Office in Houston, Texas:

• James B. Milliken, Chancellor of The University of Texas System
• Dr. Jing-Yang Jou, President of National Central University
• Dr. Mon-Chi Lio, Political Deputy Minister of Education (participating virtually from Taipei, Taiwan)
• Dr. Wen-Chang Chen, President of National Taiwan University and President of University Academic Alliance in Taiwan (participating virtually from Taipei, Taiwan)
• Yvonne Hsiao, Director of General Taiwan Economic and Cultural Office in Houston (participating virtually from Houston, Texas)