Hard Numbers: TSMC’s boom, Gemini’s ambitions, Anduril takes Ohio, Synthesia’s ambitions, TSMC evacuates after earthquake

January 21, 2025

Photo illustration of TSMC logos.

Illustration by Costfoto/NurPhoto via Reuters

38.8: On Jan. 16, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, the world’s largest contract chipmaker, reported that its fourth-quarter revenue rose 38.8% from the same period a year ago. Driven by insatiable demand for AI, TSMC has cemented itself as one of the most pivotal companies in the AI supply chain.

500 million: Google CEO Sundar Pichai told employees that he wants 500 million people to use the company’s Gemini AI technology by the end of 2025. It’s unclear how many users Gemini currently has, but it reportedly trails OpenAI’s ChatGPT, which boasts 300 million users.

1 billion: Anduril, which makes drones and other AI-powered military systems, plans to build a $1 billion factory in Columbus, Ohio. The company, based in California, said the Ohio facility, called Arsenal-1, will bring 4,000 new jobs to the Buckeye State.

2.1 billion: Synthesia, the British AI avatar company we wrote about in July, raised $180 million in a new funding round last week, raising its valuation to $2.1 billion. CEO Victor Riparbelli told the Financial Times that the UK is “the only country in the European region right now that has a real shot at becoming a top-three AI superpower.”

6.4: Taiwan was hit by a 6.4-magnitude earthquake on Tuesday, causing TSMC to evacuate its facilities. The chipmaker said that all of its staff were safe. It’s unclear how production was interrupted or whether the buildings sustained damage.

Where does Trump’s immigration crackdown stand, nearly 100 days in?

Salvadoran police officers escort an alleged member of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua recently deported by the U.S. government to be imprisoned in the Terrorism Confinement Center (CECOT) prison, as part of an agreement with the Salvadoran government, in Tecoluca, El Salvador, in this handout image obtained March 16, 2025.

Secretaria de Prensa de la Presidencia/Handout via REUTERS

President Donald Trump’s actions against migrants have generated among the most controversy of any of his policies during the first few months of his presidency.

Dispatch from DC: Bessent defends tariffs, urges IMF and World Bank reform

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent delivers remarks at the Institute of International Finance (IIF) Global Outlook Forum on sidelines of the IMF and World Bank’s 2025 annual Spring Meetings in Washington, D.C.,U.S., April 23, 2025.

REUTERS/Elizabeth Frantz

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent addressed international financiers at the Willard Hotel in Washington, DC, on Wednesday morning, saying that “America First does not mean America alone” but “fairness in the international economic system.”

EXCLUSIVE: Democratic astronaut explores Texas Senate launch

International Space Station (ISS) crew member Terry Virts of the U.S. speaks by satellite phone shortly after landing near the town of Zhezkazgan, Kazakhstan, on June 11, 2015.

REUTERS/Ivan Sekretarev/Pool

In the latest sign that Democrats are turning a new leaf after their dismal 2024 defeat, astronaut and political neophyte Terry Virts is planning to launch a run for the US Senate in Texas, GZERO Media has learned following recent conversations with those familiar with the race. He plans to challenge incumbent Sen. John Cornyn, a Republican.

Another setback for Russia-Ukraine peace talks

Delegations from France, Germany, Ukraine, the United Kingdom and the USA meet at the Elysee presidential palace in Paris on April 17, 2025.

Eric Tschaen/Pool/ABACAPRESS.COM

It’s all Big Smoke and no fire in London, as US Secretary of State Marco Rubio pulled out of Russia-Ukraine peace talks that were scheduled to take place in British capital on Wednesday, right as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky rebuffed the Americans’ peace plan that involved formally recognizing Crimea as Russian territory.

Is the age of energy transition over?

Enbridge

The concept of energy transition - the idea that one is conscious about the quantity of CO2 in the atmosphere and looking for ways to replace conventional sources of energy with lower emissions renewables - picked up steam after COVID-19. While concerns about emissions haven't gone away, priorities appear to be shifting, says Arjun Murti, partner at Veriten and founder of the energy transition newsletter Super-Spiked, on the latest episode of the podcast series "Energized: The Future of Energy" from GZERO Media's Blue Circle Studios and Enbridge. “I see no evidence that people don't always care about having reliable energy. All anyone cares about is: when I turn on my light, does it come on? If I want to go somewhere, can the car move forward?” explains Murti to host JJ Ramberg and Enbridge CEO Greg Ebel as they discuss the age of energy transition. Listen to this episode at gzeromedia.com/energized, or on Apple, Spotify, Goodpods, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Hard Numbers: TSMC’s boom, Gemini’s ambitions, Anduril takes Ohio, Synthesia’s ambitions, TSMC evacuates after earthquake

GZEROMEDIA

More from GZERO Media

When the government asks if you’re Jewish

On Monday, I received a text message that I assumed was spam. Today, I realized it was a very real survey from the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission asking me if I was Jewish – and that it was sent to everyone on Barnard College’s payroll.

Where does Trump’s immigration crackdown stand, nearly 100 days in?

President Donald Trump’s actions against migrants have generated among the most controversy of any of his policies during the first few months of his presidency.

Dispatch from DC: Bessent defends tariffs, urges IMF and World Bank reform

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent addressed international financiers at the Willard Hotel in Washington, DC, on Wednesday morning, saying that “America First does not mean America alone” but “fairness in the international economic system.”

EXCLUSIVE: Democratic astronaut explores Texas Senate launch

Another setback for Russia-Ukraine peace talks

GZEROMEDIA

Singapore’s opposition hopes to make major gains as election campaign begins

The vote promises to be the most contested since independence, as the ruling People’s Action Party sweats a strong challenge amid weak economic forecasts.

Is the age of energy transition over?

Consumers are spending — just carefully

The BRICS remain a bad bet

Advocates of the BRICS have long made the case that the group could step in to lead the international system of security and investment – and the return of Donald Trump as US president with the rollout of his trade war on US friends and foes alike has given them new momentum. But are they right?

Trump’s America: A kleptocracy but not a police state

Is America turning into a kleptocracy or a dictatorship under President Trump, or just stuck somewhere in between? On Quick Take, Ian Bremmer breaks down why US politics is more pay-to-play than ever, but why there’s still plenty standing in the way of any would-be strongman.

Hard Numbers: TSMC’s boom, Gemini’s ambitions, Anduril takes Ohio, Synthesia’s ambitions, TSMC evacuates after earthquake

GZEROMEDIA

Subscribe to GZERO Media's newsletter: Signal

More from GZERO Media

On Monday, I received a text message that I assumed was spam. Today, I realized it was a very real survey from the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission asking me if I was Jewish – and that it was sent to everyone on Barnard College’s payroll.

President Donald Trump’s actions against migrants have generated among the most controversy of any of his policies during the first few months of his presidency.

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent addressed international financiers at the Willard Hotel in Washington, DC, on Wednesday morning, saying that “America First does not mean America alone” but “fairness in the international economic system.”

GZEROMEDIA

Subscribe to GZERO Media's newsletter: Signal

The vote promises to be the most contested since independence, as the ruling People’s Action Party sweats a strong challenge amid weak economic forecasts.

Advocates of the BRICS have long made the case that the group could step in to lead the international system of security and investment – and the return of Donald Trump as US president with the rollout of his trade war on US friends and foes alike has given them new momentum. But are they right?

Is America turning into a kleptocracy or a dictatorship under President Trump, or just stuck somewhere in between? On Quick Take, Ian Bremmer breaks down why US politics is more pay-to-play than ever, but why there’s still plenty standing in the way of any would-be strongman.