On February 9, leaders from the Departments of Commerce, Defense, and Energy; and the National Science Foundation; and the Chief Executive Officer of the National Center for the Advancement of Semiconductor Technology (Natcast) gathered at the White House to announce over $5 billion in expected investment in the CHIPS R&D program, including the National Semiconductor Technology Center (NSTC), and formally establish a public-private consortium for the NSTC. The announcement included hundreds of millions of dollars of expected investment in the semiconductor workforce; along with specific funding announcements in packaging, metrology, and a CHIPS Manufacturing USA Institute. This announcement is a reflection of President Biden’s commitment to American innovation and research and development.
The NSTC is the centerpiece of CHIPS for America’s $11 billion research and development (R&D) program. A once in-a-generation opportunity, the NSTC will bring together government, industry, labor, customers, suppliers, educational institutions, entrepreneurs, and investors to accelerate the pace of new innovations from idea to marketplace. As a public-private consortium, the NSTC will lower the barriers to participation in semiconductor R&D to create a more vibrant national ecosystem and to directly address fundamental needs for a skilled, diverse semiconductor workforce.