(Reuters) – Chipmaker GlobalFoundries and missile manufacturer Lockheed Martin on Monday announced their partnership to secure domestic semiconductor supply for defense systems.
The strategic collaboration will secure manufacturing across a range of advanced and next-generation chips, and will allow leveraging of GlobalFoundries’ technology to increase anti-fragility in microelectronics systems and supply chains.
Defense companies have been grappling with supply chain disruptions including that from global chip shortages, which continue to hurt production.
The collaboration directly supports the U.S. government’s CHIPS and Science Act, which seeks to bring semiconductor manufacturing back to the United States, the statement said.
The Act provides around $52 billion in government subsidies for U.S. semiconductor production and an investment tax credit for manufacturing plants estimated to be worth $24 billion.
Lockheed Martin along with GlobalFoundries will also pursue external funding opportunities, technology development and collaboration with the U.S. government.
GlobalFoundries’ manufacturing facilities in New York and Vermont have accreditation from the U.S. government and are authorized to produce secure chips used in sensitive mission systems.
The companies will also work to develop a chiplet ecosystem, which stacks and stitches multiple chips together for rapid and affordable production.
(Reporting by Pratyush Thakur in Bengaluru; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar)
