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Broadcom and TSMC sit on opposite sides of the AI-chip supply chain: Broadcom designs custom accelerators, while TSMC manufactures chips for Broadcom and rival designers including Nvidia and AMD. BigGo Finance, summarising a Motley Fool comparison, says both have benefited from AI infrastructure spending, but argues TSMC offers exposure to more chipmakers rather than depending on custom-design orders from a narrower set of customers.

The comparison favours TSMC for a five-year investment horizon, while noting its heavy capital spending and Taiwan-related geopolitical exposure. Broadcom’s custom-chip business, meanwhile, depends on customers continuing to invest and on Broadcom winning those orders. Neither is quite a risk-free tollbooth, as the AI boom’s investors might have hoped.

Discuss: For long-term exposure to AI chips, would you favour the manufacturer serving many designers or the designer betting on custom-chip demand?

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