Taiwan Can Build Next 'Sacred Mountain' in Drone Industry, Lawmaker Says

Taiwan possesses the capability and strength to develop its unmanned vehicle industry into the nation's next "sacred mountain" of defense, mirroring the success of TSMC, according to Legislative Yuan Vice President Chiang Chi-chen. This assertion comes amidst an "explosive growth" in the commercial drone market, with global business opportunities projected to reach $100 billion by 2030.

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The commercial drone market is experiencing explosive growth, with global market value projected to reach $100 billion by 2030.

Chiang made these remarks at the "Leading 2026 - Taichung Unmanned Vehicle Industry and Overseas Business Opportunities Forum," co-hosted by the Taichung City Government and the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT), with support from the Changhua and Nantou county governments. He emphasized that this forum is not merely a discussion but a strategic declaration of the "Central Taiwan Unmanned Vehicle Industry's" ambition to enter the international arena.

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Taiwan absolutely has the conditions and the strength to build the next 'sacred mountain' of national defense after TSMC.

Highlighting Taiwan's industrial advantages, Chiang noted that the island's "strong R&D, high cost-performance, and rapid production" capabilities position it at the core of the future unmanned vehicle and AI robot era. He pointed to a previous visit with AIT Director Thomas Wang to Taichung's precision machinery sector, where Wang acknowledged Taiwan's vital role in the U.S.'s "re-industrialization" and AI development. Wang stated that American innovation and AI designs could be rapidly prototyped and mass-produced in Taiwan, specifically in Taichung.

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America's creativity and AI design can only be turned into prototype machines and put into mass production at the fastest speed in Taiwan, in Taichung.

The forum itself gathered over 50 representative companies from Central Taiwan's precision machinery, aerospace, optics, and chip sectors. This concentration of expertise demonstrates Taiwan's distinct industrial division, with northern Taiwan focusing on system design and the central region excelling in precision manufacturing and component assembly. The supply chain in Central Taiwan is internationally recognized for its quality, with many companies being "invisible champions" that have obtained U.S. cybersecurity and military-grade certifications. Consequently, the actions of Taichung, Changhua, and Nantou directly influence the global unmanned vehicle supply chain.

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Northern Taiwan focuses on system design, while Central Taiwan focuses on precision manufacturing and component assembly.