Thailand has approved its first national semiconductor and advanced electronics strategy, setting a target of about $80 billion in cumulative investment by 2050 as it seeks to move beyond its established electronics manufacturing base into chip design, wafer fabrication and advanced packaging.
The strategy, approved by the National Semiconductor and Advanced Electronics Policy Board on Thursday, also targets annual industry revenue of about $150 billion and the creation of more than 230,000 jobs by 2050. The board is chaired by Thailand’s Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Ekniti Nitithanprapas.
Under the three-phase roadmap, Thailand plans to initially strengthen semiconductor assembly and testing, expand advanced packaging and establish the groundwork for front-end wafer manufacturing. By 2040, the government wants to attract companies involved in chip design, wafer fabrication and other upstream manufacturing, before seeking an integrated domestic semiconductor supply chain by 2050.
“This is Thailand’s first comprehensive national framework for building semiconductor capabilities and moving the country into higher-value activities across the global supply chain,” Ekniti said.
The strategy gives priority to three semiconductor segments — photonics, power semiconductors and sensors.
Photonics will be aimed at applications including artificial intelligence infrastructure, data centres and high-speed communications. Power semiconductors will focus on demand from electric vehicles, energy storage and electricity grids, while the sensor segment will build on Thailand’s existing micro-electro-mechanical systems capabilities for automotive, industrial automation, connected devices and medical applications.
Thailand already has a significant electronics manufacturing industry, including semiconductor assembly and testing, printed circuit boards and electronic components. Its latest plan attempts to extend that manufacturing base further upstream into higher-value semiconductor activities.
The government plans to support the roadmap through tax incentives, grants and low-interest financing alongside investment in research facilities, chip-design infrastructure, industrial clusters and workforce development. Regulatory changes and measures to improve market access for investors and local suppliers are also part of the plan.
A workforce programme approved alongside the strategy aims to develop 86,600 people by 2030, including 84,900 skilled workers and about 1,700 advanced researchers. The programme will involve universities, research institutes and companies, with specialised courses, industry placements and overseas training forming part of the initiative.
The scale of that programme reflects one of the key constraints facing countries seeking to expand semiconductor manufacturing. Chip design, fabrication, packaging and testing require specialised engineering and technical skills, making workforce availability an important factor alongside power, water, infrastructure and investment incentives.
Thailand has seen a rise in semiconductor and advanced electronics investment proposals in recent years. Between 2023 and the first half of 2026, the Board of Investment received applications for 879 projects worth about 909 billion baht, or $27.2 billion, according to the latest government figures. These include projects covering semiconductor production, printed circuit boards, hard disk drives, AI servers, networking equipment and power-management systems.
The figure represents applications for investment promotion rather than investment already deployed.
The strategy comes as semiconductor companies expand manufacturing operations in Thailand. German chipmaker Infineon Technologies is scheduled to open a new backend manufacturing facility in Bangkok on October 1. Infineon said the plant will support production of high-value products used in areas such as electrification, energy efficiency and digitalisation.
Infineon began construction of the Samut Prakan facility in January 2025, with plans to manufacture power modules and carry out wafer testing. The company has said further expansion of the plant will depend on market demand.
Thailand’s semiconductor ecosystem also includes companies operating in chip assembly and testing, analogue and mixed-signal semiconductors, printed circuit boards, optical communications and semiconductor equipment.
Narit Therdsteerasukdi, Secretary General, Thailand Board of Investment, said access to specialised talent would be an important consideration for companies assessing semiconductor manufacturing locations.
The government’s longer-term objective under its “Made in Thailand” chip initiative is to develop domestic companies capable of participating in semiconductor research, design and manufacturing alongside international suppliers, rather than limiting the country’s role to electronics assembly.
The targets remain dependent on attracting substantial private investment over the next 24 years. Thailand is seeking more than 2.5 trillion baht in semiconductor and advanced electronics investment by 2050, with an interim target of 500 billion baht by 2030, according to the Board of Investment.
