White House said to be in talks with Intel, TSMC for US chip factories

mood · May 10, 2020

White House said to be in talks with Intel, TSMC for US chip factories
Officials want to reduce the US' dependence on Asia for processors
May 10, 2020
https://www.engadget.com/white-house-intel-tsmc-us-factory-talks-165608078.html

Wall Street Journal sources say the White House is talking to Intel and TSMC about setting up US chip factories. While Intel already has a US presence, its discussions revolve creating a foundry that other companies could use for their products — its American plans typically focus on making in-house designs. TSMC’s business already revolves around chipmaking for other companies.

The US leans heavily on Taiwan (TSMC’s home) for hardware, for example, and a conflict or natural disaster on the island nation could cripple the US tech sector. Domestic chip production could also improve security for military projects by reducing opportunities for espionage.

A TSMC spokesperson told the WSJ the company was “actively evaluating” plants in other countries, including the US, but that there was “no concrete plan.” The Department of Defense, meanwhile, didn’t directly confirm or deny the report but said chips were “certainly” a key part of the military’s supply chain concerns.
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This wouldn’t solve every issue. Companies set up shop in Asia in part due to closeness with suppliers for components and raw resources — Intel and TSMC could build US plants, but they’d still rely on some imports. They would have to find alternatives (if possible) in case typical sources are no longer available.

Nonetheless, this could be a win for the US if it can keep producing CPUs and graphics chipsets when there’s trouble overseas.
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White House said to be in talks with Intel, TSMC for US chip factories

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White House said to be in talks with Intel, TSMC for US chip factories

mood Updates Team

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