Taiwanese suppliers could fall behind in EV market warns Pegatron chairman

Several markets pose a great opportunity for Taiwanese suppliers, considering Taiwan's reputation in the information and technology industry, including 5G, EV, and low-Earth orbit satellites. Tung considers investment into these markets will significantly improve the country's competitiveness.

In recent years, Pegatron has invested more and more into the EV market. The experience has prompted Tung to become a vocal proponent of the industry, often emphasizing that EVs require much more electronics than the traditional ICE vehicles. The demand for electronics is a surefire way to bolster business in Taiwan.

Tung made his comments while speaking at the 20th-anniversary online event of the Monte Jade Science and Technology Association of Taiwan.

Despite the optimism regarding the growth of the EV market, Tung expressed concerns regarding Taiwan's experience in the industry, saying that suppliers lack a deeper understanding and know-how of key components.

In a country with Taiwan's population, resources, talent, and investment must be considered thoroughly, Tung said, pointing out the impracticability of pursuing advancements like the Chinese through large-scale investment in the EV market.

Taiwan's industry faces considerable challenges due to the domestic market size, making it much more difficult to develop EV private labels, Tung said. Many suppliers have thus chosen to pursue the production of auto parts and assembly. However, Tung pointed out that Taiwanese suppliers were found missing from the three core EV segments: batteries, electric motors, and electric control systems. Instead, Japanese, Korean, and Chinese suppliers are the most prominent in these fields.