President Joe Biden just brought up the CHIPS and Science Act, saying that it means the US is “investing more in research and development than ever before.”
The act is one of Biden’s key legislative accomplishments. It passed Congress with bipartisan support in the summer of 2022.
The law aims to boost United States manufacturing of semiconductor chips. Once a leader in the industry, the US currently manufactures only about 10% of the global supply and none of the most advanced kinds of chips that are needed for artificial intelligence technologies.
About $39 billion from the CHIPS Act will go to companies building, expanding or modernizing chip plants in the US. Some companies will also be eligible for tax credits.
While the Department of Commerce has received 600 preliminary applications for grant money, just three awards, totaling nearly $2 billion, have been announced so far. They are expected to go to three GlobalFoundries facilities in New York and Vermont; two Microchip Technology plants in Colorado and Oregon; and one Bae Systems facility in New Hampshire. The chips made at these plants are critical for use in cars, medical devices and defense systems.
Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo has said that there is not nearly enough money for every applicant to get funding. But even before the government has doled out any of the money authorized by the CHIPS Act, the legislation has also helped spark some private investments in the chips industry.
Source: www.cnn.com