Musk Warned Trump of Chip 'Disaster' in Taiwan, Book Says

Elon Musk told Donald Trump he was "freaking out" about the U.S. reliance on Taiwan for advanced chip manufacturing, warning of a potential "disaster" if China invaded the island, according to a new book by New York Times reporters Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan.

The exchange took place during a meeting of tech CEOs at the White House, the book reports. Musk, whose companies Tesla and SpaceX depend on cutting-edge semiconductors, pressed the then-president on the vulnerability of the global chip supply chain, which is heavily concentrated in Taiwan.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. produces the vast majority of the world's most advanced chips, used in everything from smartphones to military hardware. A Chinese invasion or blockade of Taiwan would cripple that supply, with no near-term replacement available.

Musk's warning came years before the current administration's push to reshore chip production through the CHIPS Act, which allocated $52 billion in subsidies for domestic fabrication plants. TSMC itself is now building three factories in Arizona under that program, though production has faced delays.

The book, set for release Tuesday, offers a behind-the-scenes look at how Musk and other tech leaders viewed the Taiwan risk long before it became a mainstream policy concern. Musk has since publicly discussed the issue, saying in a 2023 interview that Taiwan's status as a chip manufacturing hub was a "major risk" to the global economy.

Trump, who has criticized the CHIPS Act as a giveaway to foreign companies, has not commented on the book's account. The former president has said he would impose tariffs on Taiwanese chips if elected, a position that aligns with Musk's broader concern about supply concentration.

The Haberman-Swan book, titled "Confidence Man," is the latest in a series of insider accounts of the Trump administration. It draws on hundreds of interviews with former officials and associates.