U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina M. Raimondo has announced the formal launch of the $1.5 billion Public Wireless Supply Chain Innovation Fund, according to a news release.
This fund, which is backed by the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022, will invest $1.5 billion in the development of open and interoperable networks. The investment is part of the Biden-Harris Administration's Investing in America agenda, with the goal of driving wireless innovation, promoting competition and enhancing supply chain resilience, the news release said.
“The Innovation Fund is a critical step toward securing 5G wireless networks while driving innovation at home and abroad," Raimondo said in a statement. "Investing in the next generation of innovation will unlock opportunities for new and emerging companies to compete in the global telecom market, strengthen our telecom supply chains and provide our allies and friends with trusted choices and innovative technologies to compete in the 21st Century. We look forward to bringing the best of industry, academia, and the public together to deliver on this initiative.”
Through the Public Wireless Supply Chain Innovation Fund, the U.S. government aims to foster wireless innovation and competition, while also strengthening supply chain resilience. By investing in open and interoperable networks, the fund seeks to support the development of wireless technologies that are secure and reliable, and that will be built by trusted partners.
“This fund is a critical downpayment on our efforts to reshape the global wireless infrastructure supply chain towards secure and trusted vendors," U.S. Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA), said in a statement. "I look forward to seeing how the Department – working with U.S. and allied innovators and network operators – helps encourage this market to move towards security, interoperability, and greater wireless innovation.”
The fund " is the product of bipartisan legislative efforts aimed at creating a more secure, competitive, and sustainable global supply chain through the development of open and interoperable wireless networks," the news release said.
