$100m for AI-enabled sustainable semiconductor materials
The US government is launching a competition for machine learning and AI technologies to develop sustainable semiconductor materials.
The US Department of Commerce is launching the open competition to demonstrate how AI can assist in developing new sustainable semiconductor materials and processes that can be adopted in five years.
The $100m programme will be led by universities to develop artificial intelligence-powered autonomous experimentation (AI/AE) for sustainable semiconductor manufacturing. Autonomous AI systems are already being used to develop new battery materials.
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AI/AE has emerged as a potentially game-changing approach to accelerating materials research and development, combining automated synthesis and characterization tools with an AI “planner” to determine the next round of an experimental campaign. This vastly accelerates the design of new materials and the acquisition of materials data and creates opportunities for collaborations across established research universities, emerging research institutions, industry, and national laboratories.
“We have a unique opportunity to make the United States a world leader in efficient, safe, high-volume, and competitive semiconductor manufacturing,” said Under Secretary of Commerce for Standards and Technology and National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Director Laurie E. Locascio. “This CHIPS for America funding opportunity will help bring about sustainable manufacturing processes and materials to meet increasing demands for sustainability and safe working environments in perhaps as few as five years.”
“Right now, new semiconductor materials often take years to be production-ready and are incredibly resource-intensive. If we’re going to quickly build up America’s semiconductor manufacturing base, in a way that’s sustainable over the long term in the face of increasing threats from the climate crisis, we need to leverage AI to help develop sustainable material processes quickly. This new programme will harness the vast capabilities of AI to unleash the full potential of our workers and innovators, while building a more secure and enduring domestic semiconductor industry,” said U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo.
The competition will also aim to expand the participation of universities, including emerging research institutions, and their graduates in the semiconductor research and development (R&D) ecosystem. The notice of funding opportunity is expected to be released later this year.
More information about CHIPS for America’s environmental work can be found here.
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