State Department Grants Funding to Help Allies Support US Semiconductor Industry

Arizona State University has received a $13.8 million cooperative agreement from the Department of State’s Bureau of Economic and Business Affairs to improve semiconductor assembly, testing and packaging capabilities in partner countries in the Americas and the Indo-Pacific regions.

Awarded under the International Technology Security and Innovation Fund, the educational institution will lead efforts to help ITSI partners establish an environment attractive to investors and one that will support the U.S. government’s aim of boosting its local semiconductor sector.

The fund, a product of the CHIPS Act of 2022, allocates $500 million to the State Department per year over five years, starting in fiscal year 2023, State .gov reported.

Tech executives have been praising the government for enacting the CHIPS Act. Trenton Systems CEO Michael Bowling said the law is a significant piece of a wider puzzle to ignite the local industry.

The State Department has been planning to enter into partnerships to help the U.S. semiconductor industry gain traction. In May 2023, Ramin Toloui, assistant secretary for the Bureau of Economic and Business Affairs, said that the department plans to use its allocation to strengthen partnerships with allies and key partners in the overseas manufacturing sector.