A top company executive says that Intel's push to regain American dominance in the semiconductor market is a matter of national security.
Todd Brady, Intel's vice president of public affairs and sustainability, told Fox News that if a semiconductor is built overseas and potentially in an area with geopolitical risk, the entire supply chain is at risk, that could lead to national security issues for the entire supply chain.
The Semiconductor Industry Association said that the U.S. share of chip manufacturing dropped from 37% in 1990 to just 12% in 2021. Asia is home to about 75% of the world's total semiconductor manufacturing capacity.
Brady said that semiconductors are embedded in everything, and going forward will be even more so. There is a need for more capacity for semiconductors and electronic devices. $20 B ARIZONA PLANTS,
A $20 billion investment in two new factories in Arizona is at the center of the American chipmaker's plan to surpass its rivals by 2025. Brady said that Arizona is a great place to do business. We've been here for 40 years. We have great talent here. He said there was a great community that supports us, and we strongly believe that as a company to invest in the U.S. We are a U.S. based company, more than half of our manufacturing is here in the US. This added $20 billion investment is more of our commitment to investing in the United States. The largest private sector investment in Arizona history is nearly twice as much as the $12 billion state budget.
Intel has been a fixture in Arizona for a long time, according to the Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey, a Republican, told Fox News. I think they see it as a great environment with a great ecosystem. The Taiwan Semiconductor recently started construction on a $12 billion manufacturing facility in Arizona, with production expected to begin in 2024.
Semiconductor manufacturing employs more than 22,000 people in the Grand Canyon State, according to the Arizona Commerce Authority. Arizona competes with other states like California and Texas to attract semiconductor manufacturing.
Economic development in Silicon Valley has been telling them they'll have lower taxes, lighter regulation and a better quality of life if they come to the state of Arizona, Ducey said.
The governor said that supply chain issues and a global shortage of semiconductor chips cause the need to repatriate manufacturing.
Ducey told Fox News that they are in an alliance and partnership with Taiwan. He said that he hoped manufacturing would boom in the U.S., ideally in Arizona or at least in Mexico or Canada to prevent future supply chain disruptions, especially as a result of disasters like a Pandemic or foreign conflict.