SIA Welcomes Progress Toward Selection of National Semiconductor Technology Center Leadership

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The Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA) released the following statement from SIA President and CEO John Neuffer welcoming the Commerce Department’s appointment of a committee that will select the board of trustees of the National Semiconductor Technology Center (NSTC), a critical entity established by the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022 to promote U.S. semiconductor research and development.

“Today’s announcement marks good progress toward standing up the National Semiconductor Technology Center, a centerpiece of the historic CHIPS and Science Act enacted last year to reinvigorate domestic chip production and innovation. The selection committee members’ deep and varied experience makes them well-positioned to appoint a strong board of trustees that will ensure effective and efficient NSTC implementation. We look forward to working with the NSTC selection committee, the eventual board of trustees, and Secretary Raimondo and other leaders in the Commerce Department to ensure the CHIPS and Science Act provides maximum return on investment for America’s economy, national security, and supply chain resilience.”

SIA and the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) last October released a report identifying five key areas of the semiconductor R&D ecosystem that should be strengthened by the CHIPS Act’s R&D funding. The report, titled “American Semiconductor Research: Leadership Through Innovation,” highlights the importance of government-industry collaboration on the NSTC and the National Advanced Packaging Manufacturing Program (NAPMP). The study also calls for CHIPS funding to be used to bridge key gaps in the current semiconductor R&D ecosystem to help pave the way for sustained U.S. chip innovation leadership. 

The CHIPS Act’s manufacturing incentives have already sparked substantial investments in the U.S.  In fact, companies in the semiconductor ecosystem have announced dozens of new projects across America—totaling more than $200 billion in private investments—since the CHIPS Act was introduced. These announced projects will create more than 40,000 jobs in the semiconductor ecosystem and support hundreds of thousands of additional U.S. jobs throughout the U.S. economy.