The U.S. Department of Commerce has announced the finalization of $1.4 billion in awards under the CHIPS National Advanced Packaging Manufacturing Program (NAPMP). These funds aim to strengthen the United States’ leadership in semiconductor advanced packaging, creating a self-sustaining, high-volume domestic industry where advanced node chips are manufactured and packaged within the country. This initiative supports America’s efforts to bridge the gap between innovation and commercialization in the semiconductor sector.
The funding includes $300 million for advanced substrates and material research awarded to Absolics Inc., Applied Materials Inc., and Arizona State University. Absolics will receive $100 million to support its SMART Packaging Program, leveraging glass-core packaging to improve chip performance and energy efficiency for AI, high-performance computing, and data centers. Applied Materials will also receive $100 million to develop silicon-core substrate technology for next-generation 3D heterogeneous integration. Arizona State University, with its Advanced Electronics and Photonics Core Facility, will use $100 million to explore wafer-level and panel-level manufacturing, currently unavailable at a commercial scale in the U.S.
The largest portion, $1.1 billion, is allocated to Natcast to manage the CHIPS NAPMP Advanced Packaging Piloting Facility (PPF) in Tempe, Arizona. This facility will integrate cutting-edge prototyping capabilities with advanced packaging piloting, enabling the development and testing of new semiconductor materials and processes. U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo highlighted the strategic importance of the program, stating, “These investments will strengthen our end-to-end semiconductor ecosystem and ensure the United States remains a global leader in semiconductor innovation and manufacturing.”
• Key Funding Details:
• Absolics Inc. (Covington, GA): $100M to develop glass-core substrates for AI and high-performance computing.
• Applied Materials Inc. (Santa Clara, CA): $100M to advance silicon-core substrate technology for 3D integration.
• Arizona State University (Tempe, AZ): $100M to research wafer-level and panel-level microelectronics packaging.
• Natcast (Tempe, AZ): $1.1B to manage the Advanced Packaging Piloting Facility for CHIPS NAPMP.
• Program Objectives:
• Establish a domestic advanced packaging industry for high-performance chips.
• Drive innovation in substrates and packaging for AI and advanced computing.
• Strengthen the U.S. semiconductor ecosystem and global competitiveness.
