HSINCHU, Taiwan -- Taiwan's space agency has more than doubled its workforce over the past five years and is seeking deeper collaboration with the U.S. and other international partners as part of its efforts to build a globally competitive space industry on the island, the agency's chief told Nikkei Asia.

"We have two visions: to enhance national security and to develop the space economy," Taiwan Space Agency (TASA) Director-General Wu Jong-shinn said in an exclusive interview.

Wu, known as Taiwan's "rocket uncle," said it aims to make significant inroads in areas including satellite optics and communications, where it can leverage its technology industry. It is also looking to advance its capabilities in fields such as Earth observation and climate science through closer international collaboration and greater self-sufficiency in satellite communication technologies. Targets for deeper partnerships include the U.S., U.K., Japan and Australia.

Since Wu took the helm in 2021, TASA has more than doubled its workforce to about 650 people, including contractors, from around 260 just a few years ago. In space optics alone, the team has expanded from two to more than 25 staff members. But its annual budget of less than $200 million still lags its South Korean and Japanese peers.

Taiwan is undertaking its most aggressive space campaign, including plans to build its own satellites and rockets. (Cheng Ting-Fang) Wu said Taiwan entered the space market much later and more slowly than South Korea, which is already launching its own rockets, but its comprehensive electronics supply chain is one of its strengths.

"Taiwan's budget is less than its Asian peers and of course much less than the U.S., but one of the competitive edges of Taiwan is that we can manage and maximize funds and spend them in a much more cost efficient way," Wu said.

Wu said many Taiwanese technology suppliers already possess the manufacturing capabilities to produce key components and systems designed by international customers. The next step, he said, is to strengthen their ability to develop, design and manufacture products based on their own expertise, allowing them to capture more value across the supply chain.

"Taiwan is a small place. We can't do everything," Wu said. "But if we can move beyond simply building products to other people's specifications and instead design them ourselves, manufacture them and define the specifications, that would be a major step forward." Taiwan's space industry has posted annual revenue growth of about 9% to 10% over the past several years, reaching $9.3 billion in 2025, according to the Taiwan Institute of Economic Research. International cooperation is already an important part of its space industry.

In space optics, for example, Taiwan works with several local optical companies and its National Center for Instrumentation Research, while also collaborating with partners in Japan, the U.S. and the U.K.

The primary mirror aboard the recently launched Earth observation satellite Formosat-8A is made from ultra-low-expansion glass ceramic supplied by Japan's Ohara, while Kyocera provides the substrate for the satellite's key imaging sensor. At the same time, international partners are increasingly looking to tap Taiwan's strengths in information and communications technology, semiconductor manufacturing and advanced electronics to jointly develop next-generation space technologies.

Taiwan is seeking a deeper collaboration with the U.S., with Washington finalizing a space partnership with Taiwan under the Taiwan and American Space Assistance Act. If passed, the act would allow NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to directly work with TASA in areas such as satellite technology, space exploration and space science. Taiwan is set to open its first rocket launch site in the southern Taiwanese city of Pingtung.

Wu said opportunities for international collaboration extend beyond technological development to areas such as Earth observation and global climate monitoring.

"Climate data is extremely important and can come with huge commercial value. It's even important for companies to evaluate where to invest in the future. I do expect weather forecasts will become a very critical industry looking ahead," Wu said.

He added that there is significant potential for partnerships with countries that do not yet possess well-developed satellite industries but have strong demand for Earth observation and climate data, citing Australia and Spain as examples.

Taiwan is embarking on its most ambitious satellite constellation program to date, with Earth observation as a central focus. Collecting climate data will also be one of the program's primary objectives.

"As satellite communications have become increasingly important for military and national defense purposes, governments around the world have made the area a strategic development priority to strengthen resilience," said Chiu Shih-fang, a veteran tech analyst with the Taiwan Institute of Economic Research.