Samsung Electronics will receive up to $6.4 billion in funding for semiconductor manufacturing in the U.S. as part of the CHIPS and Science Act. Samsung Semiconductor CEO Kye Hyun Kyung and Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo celebrated the news this week at the company’s Taylor, Texas plant. The funds are earmarked for Samsung’s expansion in Central Texas to create additional manufacturing capabilities of essential chips for the AI, automotive, IoT, aerospace and other sectors. With the funds, Samsung is “strengthening the local semiconductor ecosystem and positioning the U.S. as a global semiconductor manufacturing destination,” Kyung said. Continue reading Samsung Will Receive Up to $6.4 Billion in CHIPS Act Funding

The United States has entered into an agreement with the United Kingdom to collaboratively develop safety tests for the most advanced AI models. The memorandum of understanding aims at evaluating the societal and national defense risks posed by advanced models. Coming after commitments made at the AI Safety Summit in November, the deal is being described as the world’s first bilateral agreement on AI safety. The agreement, signed by U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo and UK Technology Secretary Michelle Donelan, envisions the countries “working to align their scientific approaches” and to accelerate evaluations for AI models, systems and agents. Continue reading U.S. and UK Form Partnership to Accelerate AI Safety Testing

The U.S. has established the AI Safety Institute Consortium (AISIC), uniting artificial intelligence researchers, creators, academics and other users across government, industry and civil society organizations to support the development and deployment of safe and trustworthy AI. The group launches with more than 200 member entities ranging from tech giants Google, Microsoft and Amazon to AI-first firms OpenAI, Cohere and Anthropic. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo announced the move the day after naming Elizabeth Kelly director of the new U.S. AI Safety Institute, housed at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). Continue reading U.S. AI Safety Institute Consortium Debuts with 200 Members

Further insights into OpenAI CEO Sam Altman’s global fundraising effort for a multi-billion dollar computer chip venture now appears to be toward a goal establishing a network of semiconductor plants to manufacture AI chips, according to media reports. The plan would see the 38-year-old entering a hotly competitive yet underserved field, dominated by Nvidia and increasingly Intel, AMD and Qualcomm. Apparently, he feels the existing players aren’t set up to produce the amount of chips required to meet the goals of OpenAI and others through 2030, now that many businesses incorporate AI into workflows and consumer products. Continue reading Altman Is Seeking Billions in Global Funding for AI Chip Plants

U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris warned global leaders that the existential threats posed by artificial intelligence are very real and urgently need to be addressed. Harris’ remarks, delivered in a speech at the U.S. Embassy in Britain, summarized the prevailing view of world governments participating in the first global AI Safety Summit. The two-day event kicked off Wednesday with news that 27 nations — including the U.S., European Union member states and China — signed the Bletchley Declaration on AI, committing to voluntary guidelines to work as a group toward responsible and ethical AI. Continue reading Nations Sign the Bletchley Declaration in Support of Ethical AI

The U.S. Department of Commerce is further curtailing the ability of American companies to sell China advanced chips for artificial intelligence. The national security objective is to avoid providing Beijing with sophisticated silicon that could potentially fuel breakthroughs, giving the nation an advantage in what’s been couched as an “AI arms race.” China is a large market for semiconductors, and the move is said to be fueling tension on both sides of the globe. The new restrictions attempt to plug loopholes in rules the Biden administration introduced in October 2022. Continue reading U.S. Tightens Export Regulations for AI Chip Sales to China

Ten years ago AMD introduced the concept of smaller, interconnected chips that together work like one digital brain. Sometimes called “chiplets,” they’re generally less expensive than building one large chip, and when grouped together into bundles have often outperformed single wafters. In addition to AMD, companies including Apple, Amazon, Intel, IBM and Tesla have embraced the chiplet formula, which leverages advanced packaging technology, an integral part of building advanced semiconductors. Now experts are predicting packaging is going to be even more of a focus in coming years, as the global chip wars heat up. Continue reading Advanced Packaging for ‘Chiplets’ a Focus of CHIPS Funding

The U.S. plan to expand its national chip industry includes adding a minimum of two manufacturing clusters for advanced semiconductors by 2030. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo explained Thursday that the goal is to create chip ecosystems that group together fabrication plants, assembly plants, research-and-development labs and the suppliers to support each phase of operation. The vision is to make the U.S. “the only country in the world where every company capable of producing leading edge chips will have a significant R&D and high-volume manufacturing presence,” Raimondo said. Continue reading U.S. Plans to Create Manufacturing Clusters with CHIPS Act

TSMC has revised plans for its Arizona chip plant, reportedly the result of pressure from customers including Apple, Nvidia and AMD, who urged the Taiwanese company to reconsider its plan to output 5-nanometer processors that will be old news by the time the $12 billion plant opens in 2024. TSMC is expected to announce during a scheduled Tuesday visit by President Biden and Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo that it will output advanced 4-nanometer chips when production commences and will add a second nearby plant to manufacture even more sophisticated 3-nanometer chips. Continue reading TSMC’s Advanced Chipmaking Plans Leak Before Biden Visit

Taiwanese semiconductor giant GlobalWafers wants to invest $5 billion to construct a state-of-the-art 300-millimeter silicon wafer factory in Sherman, Texas, but only if Congress can fund the CHIPS for America Act, which passed in January 2021 and has been promised $52 billion but sits with an empty purse. The new GlobalWafers factory would be the first of its kind in the U.S. in 20 years and is expected to create 1,500 jobs. GlobalWafers president Mark England says if government incentives are not unleashed soon the company will “pivot to South Korea.” Continue reading GlobalWafers Ties Proposal for Texas Foundry to CHIPS Act

Samsung says over the next five years it will invest $356 billion in chip production, biopharmaceuticals and other next-gen tech, creating tens of thousands of new jobs. While Samsung says most of the funds — $285 billion — will be spent in South Korea, the Seoul-based electronics giant also has operations in the U.S., Canada, the UK and Philippines. That new plan marks a 30 percent increase in Samsung’s spending over the previous five-year period and is a considerable expansion over earlier budgeting. Memory chip manufacturing and 6G wireless are among the areas to benefit from the new investment. Continue reading Samsung Announces Plans for $356 Billion Investment in Tech

President Biden kicked-off his three-day visit to South Korea with a trip to a Samsung Electronics semiconductor plant, emphasizing an interest in strengthening supply chains and boosting competition with China in the technology sector. Biden remarked that the U.S. wants to shore-up business ties with allies including South Korea to offset the influence of  “countries that don’t share our values.” Located in Pyeongtaek, the plant churns out some of Samsung’s most advanced memory chips and is the largest semiconductor manufacturing facility in the world. South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol was present, marking the pair’s first in-person visit. Continue reading Biden Visits a Samsung Semiconductor Plant in South Korea

The U.S. and European Union are seeking to establish joint policies that advance cooperation and democratic approaches to trade, technology, and security on both sides of the Atlantic. The second meeting of the U.S.-EU Trade and Technology Council (TTC) — May 15-16 in Saclay, near Paris — emphasized how Washington, Brussels and other free-market democracies should develop a joint response to the challenges presented by dictatorships and their controlled economies. In addition to semiconductor supply chain issues, topics including China’s digital clout, export controls for technology IP and human rights were discussed. Continue reading The U.S. and European Union Strategize Global Tech Policies

Intel unveiled plans to invest an initial $19 billion to construct new leading-edge semiconductor fab mega-sites in Magdeburg, Germany; an R&D and design hub in France; and R&D, manufacturing and foundry facilities in Ireland, Italy, Poland and Spain. The plan could see as much as $88 billion invested “along the entire semiconductor value chain” in the EU over the decade, according to the Santa Clara-based chipmaker, which says it wants to introduce a next-generation chip ecosystem while offsetting reliance on Asia for a more “resilient supply chain.” Continue reading Intel Powers Up EU Chip Plans with $19 Billion German Plant

The European Commission is ramping up to boost microchip production, unveiling the European Chips Act, which proposes to unleash roughly $49 billion in public and private funds for chipmaking. The plan, announced this week, is part of the EU’s effort to regain a degree of commercial independence, and underscores the importance of computer chips to national security, something the Biden administration has also emphasized. The EC proposal reserves for the Commission the right to prioritize specific products under certain circumstances, something the chip foundries of various nations have also been doing. Continue reading European Chips Act Aims to Boost Production, EU Tech Role