SIA Commends Appointment of Deirdre Hanford as CEO of NSTC Operator Natcast
January 18, 2024 | SIAEstimated reading time: 2 minutes
The Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA) released the following statement from SIA President and CEO John Neuffer applauding the appointment of industry veteran Deirdre Hanford as CEO of the National Center for the Advancement of Semiconductor Technology (Natcast), the operator of the National Semiconductor Technology Center (NSTC) consortium. The NSTC is a critically important entity established by the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022 to promote U.S. semiconductor research and development.
“As a leading expert on semiconductor technology and a highly respected industry veteran, Deirdre is enormously qualified to fill this critical role and chart a path forward for the NSTC. I have worked with Deirdre for years and can say her outstanding contributions to our industry, her strong sense of mission, and her fierce determination to achieve ambitious results position her ideally for success as the first Natcast CEO. The stakes are high and the challenges are great, but Deirdre is the right person for the job and the right leader at the right moment to fulfill the promise of this hugely important undertaking for America and the world. We look forward to working with Deirdre and the leadership team she develops to help ensure the NSTC delivers transformative advancements in chip technology for years to come.”
Semiconductor R&D fuels America’s economic growth, national security, and technological competitiveness. The NSTC and Natcast were established to invigorate semiconductor innovation in the U.S. and drive workforce development opportunities to meet the needs of our rapidly growing industry. Hanford currently serves as chief security officer at Synopsys and has served as an inaugural member of the Industrial Advisory Committee that advises the Department of Commerce on microelectronics programs. The NSTC’s board of trustees, which selected Hanford, was announced in October.
SIA and the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) in October 2022 released a report identifying five key areas of the semiconductor R&D ecosystem that should be strengthened by the CHIPS Act’s R&D funding. The report, titled “American Semiconductor Research: Leadership Through Innovation,” highlights the importance of government-industry collaboration on the NSTC and the National Advanced Packaging Manufacturing Program (NAPMP). The study also calls for CHIPS funding to be used to bridge key gaps in the current semiconductor R&D ecosystem to help pave the way for sustained U.S. chip innovation leadership.
The CHIPS Act’s manufacturing incentives have already sparked substantial investments in the U.S. In fact, companies in the semiconductor ecosystem have announced dozens of new projects across America—totaling more than $210 billion in private investments—since the CHIPS Act was introduced. These announced projects will create more than 40,000 jobs in the semiconductor ecosystem and support hundreds of thousands of additional U.S. jobs throughout this economy.
Suggested Items
iNEMI Packaging Tech Topic Series: Role of EDA in Advanced Semiconductor Packaging
04/26/2024 | iNEMIAdvanced semiconductor packaging with heterogenous integration has made on-package integration of multiple chips a crucial part of finding alternatives to transistor scaling. Historically, EDA tools for front-end and back-end design have evolved separately; however, design complexity and the increased number of die-to-die or die-to-substrate interconnections has led to the need for EDA tools that can support integration of overall design planning, implementation, and system analysis in a single cockpit.
SMC Korea 2024 to Highlight Semiconductor Materials Trends and Innovations on Industry’s Path to $1 Trillion
04/24/2024 | SEMIWith Korea a major consumer of semiconductor materials and advanced materials a key driver of innovation on the industry’s path to $1 trillion, industry leaders and experts will gather at SMC (Strategic Materials Conference) Korea 2024 on May 29 at the Suwon Convention Center in Gyeonggi-do, South Korea to provide insights into the latest materials developments and trends. Registration is open.
Aaron Woolf, Dylan Peterson Join SIA Team
04/22/2024 | SIAThe Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA) announced Aaron Woolf and Dylan Peterson have joined the SIA team. Woolf will serve as director of global policy for economic security and Peterson will be a communications associate. SIA represents 99% of the U.S. semiconductor industry by revenue and nearly two-thirds of non-U.S. chip firms.
Digitalisation and ESG
04/19/2024 | Marina Hornasek-Metzl, AT&SDigitalisation and ESG are prominent and high-priority topics in the global business community. The first focuses on applying technology throughout the value chain to produce faster, smarter, and more desirable business outcomes. The latter emphasises the broader value a business is expected to create for its stakeholders from an environmental, social, and governance perspective.
SEMI Applauds CHIPS Program Office Progress to Diversify U.S. Semiconductor Industry Workforce
04/18/2024 | SEMIThe SEMI Foundation, the arm of SEMI dedicated to supporting economic opportunity for workers and the sustained growth of the microelectronics industry by creating pathways and opportunities for job seekers, applauded strides made by the CHIPS Program Office to diversify the U.S. semiconductor industry workforce and its release of the First Annual Report Regarding the Opportunities and Inclusion Activities Undertaken by the Department of Commerce.