TSMC executive vice president and co-chief operating officer Y.P. Chyn reportedly recalled that the company declared its Night Owl R&D initiative unsuccessful after six months. The Economic Daily News report published October 29, 2026 places Chyn’s remarks in a student conversation at National Cheng Kung University, part of United Daily News Group’s “United 75, Smart Future” series.
Night Owl aimed to speed process development
The initiative encouraged research and development engineers to work at night in an effort to accelerate advanced process development. One reported premise contrasted round-the-clock R&D with an assumed eight-hour workday at U.S. competitors. That comparison was part of the theory behind the effort.
Chyn’s reported lesson was that R&D depends on intellectual work and judgment, not simply longer hours. The six-month outcome was his account of the initiative’s failure, rather than a measured assessment of productivity.
One Team connected research and fabrication
Economic Daily News linked the Night Owl episode with TSMC’s 40nm process period. Chyn also reportedly described the company’s “One Team” approach as shared goals and accountability across departments, including research and fabrication.
The examples included bringing fabrication teams into process development earlier and having teams work together to troubleshoot process problems. The account describes these as organizational practices, not quantified results.
