Behind this rise are thousands of engineers working in places like Hsinchu Science Park.

這一增長的背後是在新竹科學園區等地工作的數千名工程師。

Lester Huang is one of them.

Lester Huang 就是其中之一。

I've been in the semiconductor industry for nearly 10 years.

我在半導體行業工作了近 10 年。

I've worked for four companies.

我曾在四家公司工作過。

You may have heard about the technology industry being an industry with long working hours and lots of pressure.

您可能聽說過技術行業是一個工作時間長、壓力大的行業。

Many engineers regularly work overtime.

許多工程師經常加班。

I think it's normal to get off work at 8 or 9 p.m.

我覺得晚上八九點下班很正常。

The work may be demanding, but it's rewarded with an impressive paycheck.

工作可能很繁重，但報酬卻很可觀。

The average salary of an engineer in Hsinchu is more than two and a half times higher than the region's average.

新竹工程師的平均薪資是該地區平均薪資的 2.5 倍以上。

The tech boom has impacted the housing market, especially around Hsinchu Science Park.

科技的蓬勃發展影響了住房市場，尤其是新竹科學園區周邊地區。

The buyers of these new buildings, they're mostly senior engineers, with annual incomes ranging from 84 to 280,000 euros.

這些新建築的買家大多是高級工程師，年收入在 84 至 28 萬歐元之間。

Armed with a high salary, engineers view purchasing an expensive property as a common next step.

有了高薪，工程師們普遍認為下一步就是購買昂貴的房產。

For many, shopping for a new apartment has become a weekend activity.

對許多人來說，選購新公寓已成為週末的一項活動。

My colleagues and I talk about buying a house, or stocks, or travelling.

我的同事和我談論買房、股票或旅行。

I think buying a house is a common topic.

我認為買房是一個共同的話題。

Sometimes someone will come along and say the pre-sale house allows to buy three households at a time.

有時會有人來，說預售房可以一次買三戶。

Then you can get more discounts.

這樣您就可以獲得更多折扣。

Sometimes you'll be invited to view the houses together on the weekend.

有時，您會被邀請在週末一起看房。

It's like group shopping, which is cheaper.

這就像團體購物，價格更便宜。

Take off your shoes, please.

請脫鞋

This is a three-bedroom, two-bathroom flat.

這是一套三室兩廳的公寓。

It's what the engineers mainly buy.

工程師們主要買的就是這個。

As engineers strategize to find the best deals, real estate prices continue to climb.

隨著工程師們為找到最佳交易而制定戰略，房地產價格不斷攀升。

Housing prices have increased by more than 50 percent each year.

房價每年增長 50% 以上。

The price per square meter ten years ago was around 7,000 euros.

十年前，每平方米的價格約為 7 000 歐元。

And during the pandemic, it increased to 8,500 euros.

而在大流行病期間，這一數字增加到了 8 500 歐元。

Now, one year later, it's 17,000 euros.

一年後的今天，它的價格是 17 000 歐元。

Meanwhile, many young Taiwanese outside the tech sector watch their dream of home ownership slip further away.

與此同時，許多未涉足科技行業的臺灣年輕人卻眼睜睜地看著自己的置業夢想離自己越來越遠。

I'm young, and I just started working.

我還年輕，剛剛開始工作。

I can't buy a house.

我買不起房子。

I think it's pretty difficult for our generation, because salary increases can't keep up with the housing prices.

我認為這對我們這一代人來說相當困難，因為工資的增長趕不上房價的增長。

Taiwan's high-tech boom is often compared to Silicon Valley, where hefty IT salaries fuel economic growth, but also push living costs to new heights and widen the gap between the rich and poor.

臺灣的高科技熱潮經常被拿來與硅谷相提並論，IT 行業的高薪推動了經濟增長，但同時也將生活成本推向了新的高度，拉大了貧富差距。

Because here, too, the discrepancy in salaries is significant.

因為這裡的工資差距也很大。

The average monthly salary in San Francisco is nearly 7,000 euros, but engineers can earn significantly more, around 12,000 euros per month.

舊金山的平均月薪接近 7,000 歐元，但工程師的月薪要高得多，約為 12,000 歐元。

It pushes away lower-income workers, so service workers who don't earn as much money have a harder time affording.

它擠走了低收入工人，是以收入不高的服務人員更難負擔。

And the traffic congestion has gotten worse and worse.

交通擁堵也越來越嚴重。

I think in Taiwan, you see a similar phenomenon.

我想在臺灣，你也能看到類似的現象。

Like San Francisco, the real estate problem is worsening in Hsinchu.

與舊金山一樣，新竹的房地產問題也日益嚴重。

Though property prices are high in both locations, costs in San Francisco stagnated in 2020 due to the pandemic.

雖然兩地的房價都很高，但由於大流行病的影響，舊金山的房價在 2020 年停滯不前。

Hsinchu's market, however, has exploded.

然而，新竹的市場卻出現了爆炸式增長。

Property prices have more than doubled.

房地產價格上漲了一倍多。

The similarities between Silicon Valley and Hsinchu are striking.

硅谷和新竹之間的相似之處非常明顯。

Both regions share a history of deep collaboration, and Hsinchu's growth has been shaped by engineers in Silicon Valley.

兩地有著深厚的合作歷史，新竹的發展也是由硅谷的工程師們塑造的。

As Taiwan's semiconductor industry thrives, it also faces new challenges.

隨著臺灣半導體產業的蓬勃發展，它也面臨著新的挑戰。

Because Taiwan has a declining birth rate, it can't provide the talent the tech industry needs.

由於臺灣出生率下降，無法提供科技產業所需的人才。

And because product demand is not as high as it once was, there are a lot of reports about companies laying off people.

由於產品需求不如從前，有關公司裁員的報道也不絕於耳。

So this could be a warning that we've reached saturation point with technology talent.

是以，這可能是一個警告：我們的技術人才已經達到飽和點。

As the local semiconductor industry faces challenges of its own, on a global scale, Taiwan's key players must also navigate a shifting geopolitical landscape.

在在地半導體產業面臨自身挑戰的同時，在全球範圍內，臺灣的主要企業也必須駕馭不斷變化的地緣政治格局。

There's so much uncertainty that it's clear that, well, TSMC is moving to Germany.

不確定因素太多，很明顯，臺積電要搬到德國去了。

It's moving out. It's spreading its risks around the world.

它正在撤離。它正在把風險擴散到世界各地。

It's really trying to prepare for any outcome, you know, in its relationship to China.

在與中國的關係上，它確實在努力為任何結果做好準備。

As Taiwan's semiconductor giants expand globally and navigate a shifting geopolitical landscape, the stakes are higher than ever.

隨著臺灣半導體巨頭向全球擴張，並在不斷變化的地緣政治格局中游刃有餘，風險比以往任何時候都要大。

Lester, too, is diversifying his investments, putting money into stocks alongside real estate.

萊斯特也在進行多元化投資，將資金投入股票和房地產。