Intel’s Gelsinger is right to complain about the speed of CHIPS funding. It is going excruciatingly slowly. While Intel has spent $30 billion on its manufacturing capacity, it has received $0 from the Federal Government. And you know even if it did receive its cash, it’d only be $8.5 billion, or less than the cost of a fab. Just give out everyone’s money already, jesus.
Pat Gelsinger has expressed frustration with how slow the U.S. CHIPS and Science Act is working. The Intel CEO was speaking in an interview with the executive editor of Yahoo! Finance, Brian Sozzi. Since President Joe Biden enacted the law, Intel has invested over $30 billion in its U.S.-based manufacturing facilities while receiving zero from the American government.
“We see the CHIPS Act as a critical thing that we have invested a lot of energy to,” said Gelsinger. “As we said on our [earnings] call, we are disappointed by the time it is taking to get it done: it is well over two years since the CHIPS Act passed and over that period I have invested $30 billion in U.S. manufacturing and we have seen $0 from the CHIPS grants. This is taking too long, we need to get it finished.”
So let’s get things straight, semiconductor manufacturers need assistance NOW not later. To boost the United States’ semiconductor ecosystem the government is going to have to invest an absolute boatload of money. Even more than the CHIPS Act is lining up to invest. That’s just a simple fact. If you want to break America’s dependence on China and Taiwan for our electronics and semiconductors you’re going to have to build up the entire business ecosystem from scratch and that cost money.
And the Biden administration has really messed this one up and has completely misread the timing of the funding. It is too close to a new administration and the closer it is to a new administration the easier it is to never give out funding to companies. Checks need to be deposited NOW, not when there’s a Republican administration hellbent on weakening America through insane economic policies. Republicans are already mentioning repealing the CHIPS Act.
At a time when Intel is being looked at by politicians and might earn itself the label of “too big to fail” you would think the Biden Administration would be working harder to get Intel EVEN MORE resources rather than holding onto what was promised. But I guess we’re in crazy times.
Ultimately Intel needs its cash, the Biden administration is asleep at the wheel when it comes to disbursing funds, and Intel’s Gelsinger is right to complain.