Charles Lyons-Burt
The CHIPS and Science Act of 2022 made a major commitment by investing $52.7 billion into the U.S. semiconductor industry, attempting to regain the country’s footing in an area where it has trailed countries like China and Taiwan for some years now. 30 years ago, America was responsible for 37 percent of production in the market. Compare that to just 12 percent today. The CHIPS Act provides tax incentives for the next several years for standing up fabrication plants, or fabs, and also puts forward initiatives to align interests with other nations so that the industry might be more cooperative and collaborative going forward.
But Trenton Systems CEO Michael Bowling says the CHIPS Act is only one step in a race he believes could be decisive in determining the next dominant international political force.
“Legislation such as the CHIPS Act is a step in the right direction in bringing board and chip manufacturing back to the United States, something that is critical both in the short-term and the long-term, but this is just the beginning,” Bowling wrote in an article posted on his LinkedIn account.
If you’re curious about Bowling’s broader perspective on the semiconductor industry and want to get a sense of the strategies the private sector and the government are adopting to make chip manufacturing an American specialty, attend ExecutiveBiz’s 2023 Microelectronics Forum. Bowling will be a participant during the panel discussion portion of this July 25th breakfast event, hosted at Falls Church, Virginia’s 2941 Restaurant. Register here!
Trenton asserts that after chips are made on U.S. shores, hopefully in an accelerated manner due to CHIPS Act funding, they then need to be used in American-manufactured technology systems and domestic “high-performance computer[s].”
“If we don’t prioritize USA-made computing, chips made here will be shipped overseas and installed on a motherboard made in Taiwan or China. This will again leave our technology vulnerable to tampering and increase the likelihood of data breaches, leaving us with the same security problems as before,” Bowling said in a blog entry published on Trenton Systems’ website.
There is some speculation that China and Taiwan have in the past even used microchips in various exported devices to spy on U.S. enterprises and go so far as to dispose of valuable intelligence, though that is disputed. It is through developments such as these, however, that Bowling sees a sense of industrial competition emerge with semiconductors comparable to the market competition surrounding oil that was seen as an indication of who was on top in the global power struggle for the past several decades.
“Since the early 1970s, it seems that geopolitical influence has largely been based upon where oil has been located, but I think that is changing drastically. Going forward, I think the geopolitics of the next 50 years will be determined by where semiconductor fabs (fabrication plants) are located,” Bowling said.
He was echoing the thoughts of Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger, who in March 2022 made the comparison between oil and semiconductors in an interview with CNN. Intel and Trenton Systems have collaborated for over three decades, with the latter company being a member of the Intel Partner Alliance and Intel Early Access Program.
Intel is a sponsor at the ExecutiveBiz 2023 Microelectronics Forum and one of its key executives, Vice President and General Manager of Public Sector Cameron Chehreh will be an introducer at the event. Chehreh is a 2023 Wash100 Award winner. To get a chance to bounce ideas off Chehreh and network and trade information with countless more respected peers, register today for the forum.
