State Department Rolls Out Plans for CHIPS Act Fund
The State Department announced last week how it plans to use the $500 million the CHIPS and Science Act is providing over five years for a new International Technology Security and Innovation (ITSI) Fund.
ITSI-supported efforts will include activities to diversify the mining, processing, and recycling of critical mineral inputs to semiconductor production, as well as diplomatic initiatives aimed at improving the resilience and security of global semiconductor supply chains.
Such initiatives will involve collaborating on export controls and licensing restrictions, coordinating policy for industrial incentives and easing supply-chain disruptions, and identifying “key regulatory and policy levers” to encourage development of chip assembly, testing, and packaging capacity in the Indo-Pacific region and the Americas.
Another portion of the funding will support efforts to bolster the security and trustworthiness of telecommunications and information technology networks.