CHIPS for America Act to boost domestic semiconductor manufacturing
Investment into semiconductor manufacturing by other countries around the world has helped to erode the U.S. semiconductor manufacturing capacity. To address this, the U.S. government has set out plans for a federal semiconductor incentive program. The CHIPS for America Fund will see over 50 billion U.S. dollars be directed toward semiconductor manufacturing, and research and development. This forms part of the wider CHIPS and Science Act, signed in 2022, that is designed to boost semiconductor competitiveness in the U.S. by supporting innovation and offering greater protection to the country's national security.U.S. companies across the entire value chain seek to benefit from the funding
Semiconductor companies can be categorized into three distinct types: integrated device manufacturers (IDMs), fabless, and foundry companies. IDMs are responsible for all semiconductor manufacturing processes from design to production. Fabless companies produce designs for semiconductors but do not own any production facilities. The actual production, or fabrication, of semiconductors, is outsourced to foundry companies. Notable IDMs in the U.S. include Intel, Micron, and Texas Instruments, in addition to an array of fabless companies such as Qualcomm, Nvidia, Broadcom, and AMD. In terms of semiconductor foundries from the U.S., GlobalFoundries ranks among the top foundries worldwide. In late 2022, the company announced that it had secured 30 million U.S. dollars in federal funding to accelerate innovation and production of next-generation chips – a trend that is set to continue as other companies in the U.S. benefit from semiconductor incentives going forward.
