TAIPEI (TVBS News) — Taichung will host a major artificial intelligence and robotics forum on Wednesday (Aug. 26). The central Taiwan city is formally declaring its ambition to become a global hub for "physical AI" (實體AI) — robots, drones, and autonomous vehicles that can sense, decide, and act in the real world. Organizers say these industries could form Taiwan's next strategic pillar alongside semiconductors.
The "2026 Smart Taichung AI Robot Forum" (2026智慧台中AI機器人論壇) will bring together Taiwan's industry leaders. Speakers include Phison Electronics (群聯電子) founder Pua Khein-seng (潘健成) and Foxconn (鴻海) software division head Kathy Yang (楊秋瑾). Industrial Technology Research Institute (工研院) Vice President Jwu-Sheng Hu (胡竹生) will also participate.
"We want to build two sacred mountains," Mayor Lu Shiow-yen (盧秀燕) told TVBS in an exclusive interview, invoking the term Taiwanese use to describe strategically vital industries like semiconductors. "One is unmanned vehicles and drones. The second is robots."
Taichung officials argue the city is uniquely positioned for this shift. The region accounts for approximately 70 percent of Taiwan's precision machinery industry, according to city government data. As of June, the city had received 370 approved investment cases under the central government's "Invest Taiwan" program — the highest of any municipality nationwide.
The forum comes as Taiwan's semiconductor dominance — long the island's economic engine and security guarantee — faces increasing pressure. The United States, European Union, Japan, and China are all investing heavily in domestic chip production, potentially eroding Taiwan's strategic advantage.
"Knowledge can almost entirely be replaced by AI. Skills can be partially replaced. But attitude cannot be replaced," Chang said, pausing between each point. "We have focused too much on knowledge and skills, but we have neglected attitude. Now we may need to flip that."
The city is also piloting AI applications in governance. Robot nurses are already patrolling corridors at Taichung Municipal Hospital, reminding patients to take medication. AI-powered disaster response systems are in development to advise officials during typhoons.
"AI ethics and AI morality are extremely important," Lu said, acknowledging that AI can create deepfakes and spread misinformation as easily as it can assist governance. "If we want to develop this kind of high technology, we must pair it with this kind of education."
The forum will be held at Taichung City Hall, with registration open at smarttaichung2026.com. The event is organized by the Taichung City Government's Digital Development Bureau (數位發展局), with Tunghai University serving as co-host.
"We hope this forum will build consensus among industry, government, and academia to jointly promote Taichung as the capital of AI robotics," Lu said.
"Taichung used to manufacture machines," Digital Development Bureau Director Huang Hui-Ming (黃惠敏) remarked. "The question for the next decade is: can we develop machines that have AI?" ◼