semiconductors

Illinois Governor proposes $500M toward development of regional quantum hub

Furthering his previous calls for the state to become "the Silicon Valley of quantum development" and part of a sweeping quest to remake the state a hub for the future of semiconductors, quantum, and AI, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker recommended $500 million in capital investments to build and maintain a regional quantum computing hub as part of his new fiscal year (2025) budget. Coupled with a previous $200 million Rebuild Illinois investment in the Chicago Quantum Exchange (CQE), the administration’s proposed investment seeks to build a quantum campus to attract private investment and create jobs. 

The White House announces over $5B from CHIPS and Science Act for R&D and workforce programs, other updates on semiconductor programs, including Mfg USA Institute

The White House announced on February 9 that the administration expects to invest over $5 billion in semiconductor-related research, development, and workforce needs. The $5 billion will flow through the National Semiconductor Technology Center (NSTC), a public-private entity created to handle the funds. Friday’s announcement established the NSTC as a public-private consortium of the Secretaries of Commerce, Defense, and Energy, the Director of the National Science Foundation, and Natcast. Natcast will operate the NSTC consortium.

NY announces $1B for semiconductor R&D center; U.S. Department of Commerce awards $35M as first step in implementation phase of CHIPS and Science

Activity to build the U.S. semiconductor industry picked up steam on Monday, December 11. On that day, New York State, Gov. Kathy Hochul announced the state was committing $1 billion to what her office described as “a $10 billion partnership with leaders from the semiconductor industry such as IBM, Micron, Applied Materials, Tokyo Electron, and others to establish a next-generation semiconductor research and development center at NY CREATES’ Albany NanoTech Complex.” Also on that day, the U.S. Department of Commerce announced the U.S. Department of Commerce and BAE Systems Electronic Systems, a business unit of BAE Systems, Inc., have signed a non-binding preliminary memorandum of terms (PMT) to provide approximately $35 million in federal incentives under the CHIPS and Science Act to support the modernization of the company’s Microelectronics Center in Nashua, New Hampshire.

Report outlines what to do about semiconductor industry labor shortage

The semiconductor industry's workforce is expected to grow from approximately 345,000 jobs today to about 460,000 by the decade's end, and of these new jobs, roughly 67,000 are at risk of being unfilled, according to a report from the Semiconductor Industry Association and Oxford Economics (SIA-OE report).

Biden Administration releases executive order regarding future of AI in the US including specific directions for DOE, NSF, DOC and SBA

The Biden Administration issued an executive order earlier this week that provides guidance on the safe, secure, and trustworthy development and use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the U.S. The EO includes guidance for agencies to work to provide new opportunities for small businesses and entrepreneurs in AI and other directives.

NIST issues final rules to prevent improper use of CHIPS Act funding

The CHIPS and Science Act (Act) established guardrails to prevent funding recipients from using the money to support the development of semiconductor manufacturing and technology in foreign countries of concern, including North Korea, China, Russia, and Iran. On September 25, 2023, the CHIPS Program Office CPO published the final rules for preventing improper use of CHIPS Act funding. The guardrails in the legislation include the Expansion Clawback and the Technology Clawback. The Expansion Clawback restricts recipients from using CHIPS funding for material expansion of manufacturing capacity in a foreign country of concern; the Technology Clawback limits recipients from engaging in joint research or technology licensing with a foreign entity of concern.

Selection Committee Announces Leaders to Operate the CHIPS National Semiconductor Technology Center

An independent selection committee recently announced the incoming board of trustees that are expected to oversee a nonprofit entity that will operate the National Semiconductor Technology Center (NSTC). The NSTC is the core research and development (R&D) component of the Department of Commerce’s CHIPS for America program. The NSTC will be a collaboration hub for members of the entire semiconductor manufacturing and supplier ecosystem. It will accelerate innovation and help lower the cost and time required to bring new technologies to market. 

Defense makes $238M CHIPS and Science Act awards for eight microelectronics regional innovation hubs

The Department of Defense announced yesterday that it issued $238 million from "Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors (CHIPS) and Science Act" funding for the establishment of eight Microelectronics Commons (Commons) regional innovation hubs. With $2 billion in funding for Fiscal Years 2023 through 2027, the Microelectronics Commons program aims to leverage these hubs to accelerate domestic hardware prototyping and "lab-to-fab" transition of semiconductor technologies. The hope is this will help mitigate supply chain risks and ultimately expedite access to the most cutting-edge microchips for U.S. troops.

NSF expands its advanced materials network with nine new centers

The National Science Foundation (NSF) is expanding a network of research centers across the country to translate university-based R&D into new, and hopefully, better advanced materials. In late June, NSF announced the distribution of $162 million to support the creation of nine more Materials Research Science & Engineering Centers (MRSECs), bringing the total number of centers to twenty. Each of the new centers will receive $18 million over six years.

Funding opportunity for large semiconductor supply chain projects

The U.S. Department of Commerce recently announced a funding opportunity and application process for large semiconductor supply chain projects that include materials and manufacturing equipment facility projects with capital investments equal to or exceeding $300 million. Alongside the funding opportunity for larger supply chain projects, the Department also released a “Vision for Success" outlining strategic objectives for investments in the semiconductor supply chain. The goals in the vision paper include:

Pages

Subscribe to RSS - semiconductors