ASML warns it will give meaning to its “transition year” in yet another way if the Dutch government does not change its take on immigration policy. It is very clear in its wishes because the chip machine manufacturer needs foreign talent to keep developing itself. That focus on innovation has become all the more important with the rise of AI, in which ASML has a very important role to play. Will the company soon expand into other European countries?
Peter Wennink, CEO of ASML, made some striking statements while presenting the company’s annual figures. Those statements bring uncertainty as to whether the chip machine company will remain a Dutch company.
Needs labour migration
“Be careful what you want. We will go where we can grow,” Wennink spoke at the announcement of ASML’s annual figures. Those figures were favorable and the company even managed to set a new record annual revenue last year. A positive result the chip machine maker is keen to maintain. That is why the CEO warned the Dutch government to be careful with the brake that various political parties want to place on labour migration.
“We are a global company with customers all over the world. We will go where we can grow and where we can best serve our customers,” he said. The brake on labour migration can be a setback too much for the chip machine company, which was already facing disrupting export restrictions to China from the Dutch government and the U.S. in 2023.
Read also: ASML wants to expand significantly in Berlin: invests 100 million euros annually
Threatens the international position of the Netherlands
ASML labels the Dutch climate as unfavourable. This potentially poses a major problem for the Dutch government, which only recently designated semiconductor technologies as one of the ten technologies in which to invest in order to ensure sufficient workplaces.
ASML is a major player within this technological field and a major driver of the Dutch labour market. A quick search on LinkedIn tells us that the company employs at least 36,000 people. Not all of them work within ASML’s Dutch branch, but with 21,000 employees in the Netherlands, the company remains predominantly committed to the Netherlands.
Convinced of its importance in AI development
Wennink does not need the confirmation of the Dutch government to know that the company still has a hugely important role to play in the coming years. He sees AI has two major needs that ASML can fill: data storage and computing power. “I think that without ASML, without our technology, this is not going to happen,” in which he refers to the AI explosion.
So, the chipmaker will exploit this potential in the AI race, with or without the Netherlands. It remains to be seen what the government’s response will be to Wennink’s concerns. It is clear that there is a strong desire to keep the company within the country’s borders, but if the government does not meet ASML’s wishes, European expansion may well be on the horizon.
Also read: “ASML scrapped shipments to China under pressure from US”