Representatives from two chipmakers, TSMC and Intel, said on Sunday that the Trump administration is in talks with semiconductor companies about building chip factories in the United States.
Intel Corp is in discussions with the United States Department of Defense over improving domestic sources for microelectronics and related technology, Intel spokesman William Moss said in an emailed statement… Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co, on the other hand, has been in talks with the U.S. Department of Commerce about building a U.S. factory but said it has not made a final decision yet.
Intel Chief Executive Bob Swan wrote a letter to the Department of Defense in late March in which he expressed the company’s willingness to build a foundry – a term used in the industry to reference a chip factory – in partnership with the Pentagon. “This is more important than ever, given the uncertainty created by the current geopolitical environment”, Swan wrote in the letter dated March 30 and seen by Reuters on Sunday. “We currently think it is in the best interest of the United States and of Intel to explore how Intel could operate a commercial U.S. foundry to supply a broad range of microelectronics,” the letter from the Intel CEO added.
The Trump administration’s discussions with chipmakers were reported earlier by The Wall Street Journal, with the report adding that TSMC also has been talking with Apple Inc, one of its largest customers, about building a chip factory in the United States.
MacDailyNews Take: Strategic interest.