Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger said that dawdling politicians may be the difference between his company building a couple of factories or building “one of the great tech hubs of the world.”
His comments regard the proposed legislation, known as the CHIPS Act, that will see the US government pump billions of dollars into bolstering semiconductor manufacturing in America.
“It’s time to get all the chaff out of the way, get to the core issues, get decisions made over the next two weeks,” Gelsinger said in an interview overnight.
“I think both sides of the aisle now — both bipartisan and bicameral — feel the urgency of getting this done before the August recess.”
He says the “scope and scale” of Intel investment in the US hinges on this funding being passed. The company already cancelled breaking ground on a A$29 billion factory in Ohio, which was scheduled to start yesterday.
“We’re going slow and small or we’re going to go big and bold based on the CHIPS Act,” Gelsinger said.
“We’re committed to go build two fabs there. I don’t want a two-fab site there. I want an eight or 10 fab site there. I want this to become a tech hub that is the largest manufacturing location and one of the great tech hubs of the world. That is our objective.”
