One year on from the launch of the £1bn National Semiconductor Strategy, the UK government has now announced the UK Semiconductor Institute, which will bring together government, universities and the private sector to support key components laid out in the strategy to grow the UK’s semiconductor sector.
Over a trillion semiconductors are manufactured each year, and the global semiconductor market is forecast to reach $1tn by 2030, with these chips underpinning future technologies, such as AI, quantum and 6G.
Taiwan holds the lion’s share of global chip production, but its proximity to China has seen governments of some Western nations take a closer look at financing their own chipmaking plants and consider the cost to be worth bringing at least some production home.
For instance, in the US, the CHIPS Act has pledged almost $280bn to semiconductor-related investments by the end of 2026, including a bid to triple its domestic semiconductor manufacturing capacity between 2022 and 2032.
The EU is not far behind with its €40bn-plus for chip manufacturing in addition to the funding for the various Horizon Europe projects already in place.
The UK launched its £1bn National Semiconductor Strategy last May. The emphasis of this strategy is to build on British strengths including compound chips, design and R&D, rather than manufacturing the semiconductors themselves.
“Semiconductors underpin all the technology that keeps our economy moving. Our strategy set out that we would grow the sector and make it resilient by focusing on what the British chip sector does best,” said Saqib Bhatti, UK technology minister.
The UK’s Semiconductor Institute, which is independent from government so as to be ‘the voice of industry’, is now tasked with building on this strategy and ensuring chip researchers have the tools and infrastructure needed to convert their innovation into market-ready products.
The Semiconductor Institute will also act as an entry point for technology businesses and international partners who want to work with the UK semiconductor sector.
“Building on the early success of the strategy, the Semiconductor Institute will unify the semiconductor sector to focus our talented researchers on securing our status at the cutting edge of semiconductor science,” added Bhatti.
Since the launch of the strategy, the government has launched ChipStart, a pilot incubator for start-ups, invested £22m in two Innovation and Knowledge Centres in Bristol and Southampton, and secured access to Horizon Europe’s €1.3bn Chips Joint Undertaking.
The Semiconductor Institute also intends to implement the UK Semiconductor Infrastructure Initiative, which was announced in the National Semiconductor Strategy in 2023.
Welcoming today’s announcement, Martin McHugh, CEO at Compound Semiconductor Applications (CSA) Catapult, said: “The SI will ensure the UK has a strategic and coordinated approach to developing new technologies, improving skills and exploiting areas in which the UK has existing strengths.
“One of these strengths is compound semiconductors and we look forward to working closely with the SI to further the advancement of this critical technology that will accelerate our route to net zero through electrification and provide a secure and resilient telecoms network for the future.”
David Moore, CEO of Pragmatic Semiconductor, said: “As a UK-based semiconductor company, servicing a global customer base, we welcome efforts to provide access to technology to foster the growth of emerging businesses, drive the expansion of the sector talent pool and promote international partnerships.”
