As an integral player in advanced semiconductor supply chains, the United States enjoys advantages over China in producing and accessing chips for artificial intelligence and other leading-edge computing technologies. However, a lack of domestic production capacity threatens U.S. semiconductor access. The United States can strengthen its advantages by working with allies and partners to prevent China from producing leading-edge chips and by reshoring its own domestic chipmaking capacity.

Research Analyst Will Hunt recommends allocating at least $23 billion of the $37 billion manufacturing incentives in the CHIPS Act for leading-node logic chips if the U.S. wants to produce advanced technological military equipment.

According to Research Analyst Will Hunt, leading node chips are necessary if the United States wants to maintain its technological military edge.

The semiconductor industry and the U.S. government are engaged in ambitious plans to expand domestic semiconductor manufacturing capacity. Previous CSET research has found that the CHIPS for America Act incentives, if carefully targeted and augmented by adequate regulatory and workforce support, could reverse the observable decline in U.S. semiconductor manufacturing capacity since 1990. This paper argues that targeted investment incentives to increase U.S.-based advanced packaging capacity are also important for innovation, supply chain security, and ongoing semiconductor industry leadership.

CSET's Anna Puglisi discussed the Chinese government's means to acquire tech and trade secrets within the semiconductor industry after Dutch semiconductor manufacturer ASML accused Beijing firms Dongfang Jingyuan Electron Ltd. and Xtal Inc. for IP theft.

China’s "Science and Technology Daily," a state-run newspaper, published a revealing series of articles in 2018 on 35 different Chinese technological import dependencies. The articles, accessible here in English for the first time, express concern that strategic Chinese industries are vulnerable to any disruption to their supply of specific U.S., Japanese, and European “chokepoint” technologies. This issue brief summarizes the article series and analyzes the Chinese perspective on these import dependencies and their causes.

In an opinion piece for The Hill, Research Analyst Will Hunt and CSET Alum Remco Zwetsloot argue that funding from the U.S. Innovation and Competition Act and the America COMPETE Act isn't the only resource needed to bolster U.S. supply chains. The U.S. is in need of STEM talent to compete.

A CSET study estimates growth in semiconductor manufacturing employment by 19 percent from CHIPS Act incentives.

In his latest CSET brief, Research Analyst Will Hunt explains why exports controls on semiconductor manufacturing equipment against China are an important leveraging tool for the U.S. and its allies.

Offshoring the production of semiconductor manufacturing equipment would remove an important source of leverage over China and make the United States more dependent on other countries for some of the most important inputs to semiconductor manufacturing. This brief explores the factors driving U.S. SME firms to offshore production and what can be done to slow or reverse offshoring.