Tesla

China Will Never Beat Taiwan, Here’s Why

Mar 27, 2026 · 22:54

This episode argues that Taiwan Semiconductor (TSMC) built an uncopyable monopoly—the "Silicon Shield"—on an island whose hostile geography and geopolitical limbo forced it to out-engineer the world. It traces how Taiwan, expelled from the UN Security Council in 1971 in favor of the People's Republic of China, pivoted to chipmaking, adopting the just-in-time system Japan used to beat Detroit and packing 530 companies and 20 fabs around Tsinghua and Chiao Tung universities in Hsinchu Science Park, which makes essentially 100% of the most advanced chips. The episode claims Taiwan's typhoons, droughts, and earthquakes on the ring of fire drove a discipline that yields more than 8 working chips per 10 while Samsung can't hit 5 and Intel reaches maybe 7. Morris Chang's foundry model—never designing a chip, only manufacturing—won Apple after Steve Jobs' fury at Samsung copying the iPhone, and Apple's role as anchor tenant co-develops each generation, keeping Taiwan semi years ahead as a neutral "Switzerland" every country depends on.

Only One of These Cars Can Make Money

Sep 16, 2025 · 24:08

Maxinomics pits Tesla against Waymo in the robotaxi race, with host Phil Andrews arguing the winner will be decided by who can build vehicles cheaper — Andrew Carnegie's vertical integration playbook. In a three-leg San Francisco test, a Tesla on full self-driving finished in 63 minutes versus 78:59 for Waymo — a 16-minute gap that would let Tesla serve the same riders with 25% fewer cars. Tesla bets cameras alone can match human driving; Waymo runs 29 sensors including lidar, echoing Edison's losing DC bet in a winner-takes-most market. Waymo's cars cost an estimated $100,000 each versus Tesla's $38,000 Model Y; instead Waymo partners with Chrysler, Jaguar, Hyundai and Zeekr — an Android-style playbook adding supplier margins and geopolitical risk after Zeekr delisted from the NYSE.

Why Hasn't China Collapsed?

Jun 3, 2025 · 19:59

Leland Miller of China Beige Book joins Maxinomics to explain how Xi Jinping's CCP keeps China predictable by controlling what's made, where people move and who enters. State-owned enterprises—9 trillion of China's 16-trillion stock market—let the party pick winners, steering cheap state credit into solar, EVs, batteries and shipbuilding. Hukou rules grew Shenzhen from 30,000 people in 1980 to 18 million, while the Great Firewall and the scrapped Ant IPO after Jack Ma called Chinese banks pawn shops cap speech and business. At 0.07% immigrants and under 2,000 new citizens a year, China stays closed yet gave Tesla a fully owned Shanghai factory to trigger the catfish effect that seeded its EV industry. Miller rejects collapse predictions: the non-commercial financial system doesn't fail like the West's.