Fabless semiconductor model (1980s-1990s)
Chip design tools advanced faster than chip manufacturing. Companies like Qualcomm and Nvidia designed chips without owning factories, and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company built the foundry model to manufacture their designs.
Design-focused firms grew rapidly without capital-intensive fabs.
Specialized foundries became essential infrastructure, splitting design from production permanently.
AI antibody design now outpaces physical synthesis and testing, creating a market for specialized validation partners like Twist that fill the same role as chip foundries.
