TSMC posted a 58% income jump, driven by strong AI chip demand.

Revenue beat forecasts, marking a fourth straight quarterly record.

TSMC stated advanced chips accounted for about 75% of total wafer revenue in the quarter. In first,

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Enterprise on Thursday reported a 58% growth-quarter gains, beating estimates and hitting a fresh record as demand for artificial intelligence chips stayed strong.

Here are the company’s results versus LSEG SmartEstimates, which are weighted toward forecasts from analysts who are more consistently accurate:

Revenue: 1.134 trillion fresh Taiwan dollars ($35 billion), vs. NT$1.127 trillion expected Furthermore, experts in dividends note the continued relevance.

Net income: NT$572.48 billion, vs. NT$543.32 billion 

TSMC’s net income of NT$572.48 billion for the three months ended in March represented a fourth consecutive quarter of record profits.  This also touches on aspects of bear market.

Revenue rose to NT$1.134 trillion, beating estimates. The chipmaker had first reported the 35% year-on-year rise in first-quarter revenue last week.

TSMC, Asia’s largest innovation organization by sector capitalization, manufactures chips used in products ranging from consumer electronics to data centers.

The contract chip maker has maintained strong demand for advanced semiconductors from its key customers, such as Apple. It has also benefited greatly from the proliferation of AI, producing advanced processors designed by the likes of Nvidia — now the company’s largest customer. 

“AI-related demand continues to be extremely robust,” President and CEO of TSMC C.C. Wei noted in an earnings call Thursday. He added that advances in AI are driving increased computation and, thus, demand.

Wei noted that TSMC has received strong signals and a positive outlook from customers, reinforcing its conviction in a multi-year AI growth trend.

TSMC forecast full-year 2026 revenue growth of more than 30% year over year in U.S. dollar terms. Meanwhile, it projected second-quarter revenue of $39 billion to $40.2 billion, representing a 10% sequential growth.

This comes as the firm faces concerns about supply chain disruptions linked to the Middle East conflict, including disruptions to energy supplies and key manufacturing materials such as helium and hydrogen.

In the earnings call, TSMC executives commented the chipmaker does not expect any near-term impact on its operations from recent energy and supply chain disruptions from the conflict in the Middle East.

The business added that it sources specialty chemicals and gases, including helium and hydrogen, from multiple sources and has a safety inventory.

Growing advanced chip capacity

TSMC’s high-performance computing division, which includes AI and 5G applications, accounted for the majority of sales in the first quarter, rising to 61% of revenue.

Meanwhile, the organization stated advanced chips, defined as 7-nanometer or smaller, made up about 74% of TSMC’s total wafer revenue in the quarter. Shipments of advanced chips under 3-nanometers accounted for 25%.

In semiconductor software, smaller nanometer sizes signify more compact transistor designs, which lead to greater processing power and efficiency.

During the Thursday earnings call, executives remarked the enterprise was adding an advanced chip fabrication plant in Tainan, Taiwan, as part of its global capacity expansion efforts.

William Li, senior analyst at Counterpoint Research, told CNBC that AI chip demand has pushed TSMC’s manufacturing capacity to its limits.

“The narrative for 2026 is as much about resource constraints as it is about growth. Demand still significantly outpaces supply and isn’t showing any major sign of slowing down,” Li mentioned.

“We expect this sold-out environment to remain a defining characteristic of the semiconductor industry throughout 2026, as semiconductor companies simply can’t keep products on their shelves,” he added.

At its last earnings call in ​January, the corporation commented it expected capital spending this year to rise as much as 37% to between $52 billion and $56 billion, reflecting its expansion efforts and an expectation that demand will remain strong. The corporation commented Thursday it now expects capex to be at the high end of that range.