Semiconductor leader Huang Chongren dies, remembered for multiple industry rescues

Huang Chongren, chairman of Taiwan's semiconductor firm Powerchip (formerly Licheng), died of heart failure. He was widely known as the "nine‑lives cat" for repeatedly steering his company through severe crises.

In the late 1990s, facing a potential takeover by United Microelectronics, Huang secured a strategic partnership with TSMC founder Morris Chang, preserving Powerchip's independence. During a debt‑laden period after the company's delisting, he obtained a $5 billion rescue from Kingston co‑founder David Sun, which provided critical cash flow and equipment. Later, after a near‑bankruptcy episode caused by Apple withdrawing licensing rights, Apple itself became a key customer when it selected Powerchip to supply 12‑inch wafers for the iPhone 4 and iPhone 5, revitalising the firm’s finances.

Huang's death marks the loss of a pivotal figure in Taiwan's semiconductor sector, whose ability to forge alliances with industry leaders such as Morris Chang, David Sun, and even former rival Steve Jobs, helped sustain the company through multiple existential threats.