By now, most Americans know that chips exist in every electronic item used in America today — cars, refrigerators, airplanes, medical devices and smartphones. While the U.S. remains the leader in advanced semiconductor design and development, actual production of chips has shifted dramatically overseas. This geographic imbalance has evolved over the past two decades, and while it is a public inconvenience, it also poses a genuine national security risk and impedes Americas ability to maintain global leadership in critical advanced technologies essential to future growth and security.
Today chip production is hyper-concentrated in Asia, especially the development and manufacturing of advanced chips required for new technologies around artificial intelligence and quantum computing. Substantial Asian country government subsidies aimed at increasing the capabilities of indigenous companies, together with incentives to attract Western corporations, are key drivers that led to this situation. Another contributing factor has been the need for U.S. companies to be competitive in that region by securing market access and leveraging lower overhead and operational costs.
