Department of Defense awards Indiana $33M for regional innovation hub
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Indiana is one of eight states selected for a regional technology and innovation hub that will be part of a federally funded national network of centers supporting domestic production of microelectronics, semiconductor manufacturing and other advanced technologies, the U.S. Department of Defense announced Wednesday.
The Silicon Crossroads Microelectronic Commons Hub will receive $33 million in federal funding, Deputy Secretary of Defense Kathleen Hicks said.
The $238 million awarded to eight hubs is the largest award to date under the Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors and Science, or CHIPS, Act, a $280 billion piece of federal legislation passed last year with the goal of boosting domestic production of microelectronics.
“The microelectronics commons is focused on bridging and accelerating the lab to fab transition, that infamous ‘valley of death’ between research and production,” Hicks said in a press conference Wednesday. “President Biden’s CHIPS Act will supercharge America’s ability to prototype, manufacture and produce microelectronics scale.”
The federal agency received 83 proposals from more than 640 organizations, she added.
Each hub will be focused on advancing U.S. technology leadership in the areas of AI, computing, 5G/6G, quantum technology, electromagnetic warfare and commercial “leap forward’ technologies, Hicks said.
The planned location of Indiana’s hub has not been publicly announced.
Other states that were awarded hubs were Arizona, California, Massachusetts, New York, North Carolina and Ohio. California was awarded two hubs.
Indiana’s winning application was submitted by Silicon Crossroads Microelectronics Hub, a consortium of stakeholders from Indiana, Michigan, and Illinois in the microelectronics and research sectors. The Applied Research Institute, a Bloomington-based not-for-profit that works with universities, industry and the government on technology and innovation issues, convened leaders from private, public, academia and not-for-profit sectors to submit the application.
U.S. Sen. Todd Young, R-Indiana, who co-authored the CHIPS Act with Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-New York, said the selection shows that Hoosiers are “leading the way” in technology and innovation.
“As we collectively work to grow the nation’s microelectronics base, Indiana will play a key role in the development of these critical national security technologies and capabilities,” Young said in a media release. “More broadly, this announcement shows how the CHIPS and Science Act will connect more of America, including the industrial Midwest, to the innovation economy. This is an exciting day for all who partnered on this effort across Indiana.”
In a written statement, Gov. Eric Holcomb praised the Applied Research Institute for submitting a winning proposal.
“The Naval Surface Warfare Center located at Crane, Indiana, plays a significant role in the DoD’s microelectronics strategy to build American dominance in microelectronics production and development,” Holcomb said, adding that it “builds on the Midwest’s strengths in research and development as well as workforce training at all levels, to build a domestic semiconductor industry, a national security imperative to keep our nation ahead of our adversaries.”
The defense-focused hubs announced Wednesday are different from the 20 regional tech hubs that will also be funded by the CHIPS Act but overseen by the U.S. Department of Commerce.
The ARI submitted a separate application last month to the United States Economic Development Administration for a U.S. Department of Commerce-led hub. The federal agency is expected to announce recipients this fall.
In addition to supporting tech hubs, funding from the CHIPS and Science Act will also support specific projects.
More than 450 companies from 42 states have already applied for the first round of $39 billion worth of subsidies made available through the CHIPS and Science Act, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce.
Minnesota-based Skywater Technology’s, which is building a $1.8 billion semiconductor production facility at Purdue University, is one of several Indiana companies seeking funds.