Taiwan President Lai Ching-te and the CEO of Taiwan's largest chipmaker on Thursday held a joint news conference defending TSMC's decision to invest $100 billion in the U.S., saying that it stemmed from customer demand and not out of pressure from the

Taiwanese chipmaking giant TSMC's plan to invest $100 billion in the United States was a "historic moment" for Taiwan-US ties, the island's President Lai Ching-te said on Thursday.

Taiwanese chip-making giant TSMC plans to invest a whopping $100 billion in the United States, after US President Donald Trump threatened to slap tariffs on overseas-made chips. It follows Trump's accusations that Taiwan stole the US chip industry and his threats to impose tariffs of up to 100 percent -- and Taipei's promises to invest more in the United States.

Trump announced that Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), a leader in semiconductors and chip manufacturing, would invest $100 billion in the US. With this additional investment, TSMC will make its total investment in the US about $165 billion.