Press Release:
Mike Splinter to Succeed Paul Wolfowitz as Chairman of the US-Taiwan Business Council
(Arlington, Virginia, September 5, 2018)
The US-Taiwan Business Council is pleased to announce that Michael R. Splinter has accepted the post of Chairman of the Board of the US-Taiwan Business Council. Mr. Splinter replaces Paul Wolfowitz, who had served in the role since 2008.
It is with great pleasure that we welcome Mr. Splinter to the Council. He is an accomplished veteran of the semiconductor industry, with long tenures in various senior executive roles at Intel and at Applied Materials. As the former Chairman & CEO of Applied Materials – a long-term member of the Council’s Board of Directors, with substantial investments in Taiwan – Mr. Splinter worked closely with local customers and suppliers in Hsinchu, Linkou, Taichung, Tainan, and Taoyuan. He brings his extensive experience and comprehensive understanding of the political, trade, and business relationship between the U.S. and Taiwan to the position of Council Chairman.
Mr. Splinter is currently a general partner at WISC Partners, and serves as Chairman of the board at NASDAQ. He serves on the board of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), which is Taiwan’s largest semiconductor company. He also sits on the boards of Gogoro, Meyer Burger Technology, and the University of Wisconsin Foundation.
Mr. Splinter served as President and CEO of Applied Materials from 2003 to 2013, and was Chairman of the Board between 2009 and 2015. Prior to joining Applied Materials, Mr. Splinter spent 20 years at Intel Corporation, where he held a number of positions including Executive Vice President and Director of Sales and Marketing, and Executive Vice President and General Manager of the Technology and Manufacturing Group. Mr. Splinter began his career at the Electronics Research Center of Rockwell International.
Mr. Splinter holds an Honorary Doctorate in Electrical Engineering, a Master of Science in Electrical Engineering, and a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering, all from the University of Wisconsin, Madison. He holds two patents.
Previous US-Taiwan Business Council Chairmen include Paul D. Wolfowitz, William E. Brock, William S. Cohen, Frank C. Carlucci, William P. Clark, Dan Tellep, Caspar Weinberger, and David Kennedy.