The best time to plant a tree is 20 years ago. The best time to build a semiconductor foundry is 5 years ago

The history of computing is all change, all the time. Yet silicon-slingers let the chips fail where they may
Column Unless you've been hiding under a (non-silicate) rock, you know there's a massive global shortage of semiconductors. Automobile production lines have stalled. New computers are launched late. Gamers can't get their hands on the latest bits of kit. And we're told that this won't clear up until 2023. If we're lucky.…