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). The funding aims to strengthen U.S. leadership in advanced packaging and facilitate the transition of new technologies to large-scale manufacturing within the country.
"Bolstering our advanced packaging capabilities is key to America remaining a global leader in leading-edge semiconductor manufacturing," stated U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo. "These CHIPS for America investments and CHIPS research and development flagship facilities will strengthen our end-to-end semiconductor ecosystem and help close the gap between invention and commercialization to ensure the United States is a global leader in semiconductor innovation and manufacturing."
Several entities received significant funding through these awards:
Absolics, Inc., based in Covington, Georgia, received $100 million to support its Substrate and Materials Advanced Research and Technology (SMART) Packaging Program. This project focuses on developing a glass-core packaging ecosystem that could enhance chip performance for AI, high-performance computing, and data centers by lowering power consumption and system complexity.
Applied Materials, Inc., located in Santa Clara, California, also secured $100 million. The company will use this funding to advance silicon-core substrate technology for next-generation advanced packaging and 3D heterogeneous integration. This technology may further establish America's position in energy-efficient AI systems.
Arizona State University (ASU) was awarded $100 million to develop microelectronics packaging through fan-out-wafer-level-processing (FOWLP). ASU's project aims at exploring commercial viability for wafer-level and panel-level manufacturing not yet available as a commercial capability in the U.S.
Natcast’s Advanced Packaging Facility in Tempe, Arizona, received $1.1 billion. This funding supports Natcast's management of CHIPS NAPMP advanced packaging capabilities co-located with NSTC prototyping at the newly announced CHIPS for America NSTC Prototyping and NAPMP Piloting Facility (PPF).
CHIPS for America initiatives aim to stimulate private sector investment, create jobs, promote domestic production, and revitalize communities left behind. The program includes both a manufacturing incentives office and an R&D office within the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), part of the Department of Commerce.
