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Establishing U.S. Leadership in Future Semiconductor Technologies
The National Semiconductor Technology Center (NSTC), will be a public-private consortium dedicated to semiconductor research and development in the United States. The NSTC will convene the U.S. government, organizations across the semiconductor ecosystem — including academia and businesses of all kinds — to address the most challenging barriers to continued technological progress in the domestic semiconductor industry, including the need for a capable workforce.
Why Do We Need the NSTC?
Semiconductors power everything, including computers, smartphones, appliances, automobiles, gaming hardware, medical equipment and other critical devices, and more. Since Jack Kilby demonstrated the first integrated circuit in 1958, the rate of advancement has been astonishing. Despite many predictions of fundamental barriers along the way, semiconductors have arguably become the most sophisticated systems known to mankind, and progress continues today. Society will rely on yet more progress as semiconductors continue to be the building blocks of the technologies that will shape our future, including artificial intelligence (AI), biotechnology, and clean energy. Because semiconductors are a critical technology that underpins society, we must ensure that the U.S. leads the world in both innovation and manufacturing.
As semiconductor technology becomes more sophisticated, this progress comes at an increasing cost. New innovations require a greater investment to make it to market. Making an impact with a new invention can require more capital than most start-ups can afford. In some cases, even the largest companies cannot take on the risk required to bring new technologies into production.
The NSTC reflects a once-in-a-generation opportunity for the U.S. to drive the pace of innovation, set standards, and re-establish global leadership in semiconductor design and manufacturing.
The NSTC has three strategic goals:
- Extend U.S. leadership in foundational technologies for future applications and industries and strengthen the U.S. semiconductor manufacturing ecosystem
- Significantly reduce the time and cost to prototype innovative ideas
- Build and sustain a semiconductor workforce development ecosystem