During a visit to Dallas last week, Sen. Ted Cruz advocated for a proposed $11 billion semiconductor center to be located in Texas.
Several billions of dollars are already earmarked for new semiconductor factories in Texas, mostly in Austin and North Texas, according to Dallas Business Journal.
In August, Congress approved $53 billion for semiconductor manufacturing and research through CHIPS for America, with the goal of accelerating the U.S. semiconductor industry.
Currently, Taiwan dominates the advanced semiconductor industry, producing over 90% of the world’s supply, according to The Economist.
The Congress-approved bill calls for an $11 billion center for research and development, known as the National Semiconductor Technology Center (NSTC), and Cruz told the DBJ that he is hopeful Texas will be selected for the home of this innovation hub.
“I think it is critically important that the tens of billions of dollars that the Biden administration is spending right now — money that Congress has already appropriated — be spent based on clear and objective criteria, on fair metrics, rather than on political patronage,” Cruz told the DBJ on Friday.
“Those billions of dollars should not be spent based on who has a buddy of the Biden White House, but rather based on objective and fair standards. If the decisions are merit-based, I have great confidence that Texas will do very, very well.”
The NSTC will be a public-private partnership serving as the hub of the semiconductor industry in the U.S.
“The Biden White House is not terribly fond of the state of Texas. If it’s simply a political decision, our chances are not nearly as good, but I’m hopeful. There is no economic engine on the planet like the state of Texas,” Cruz told the DBJ.
Cruz said he will fight for the center to be built in Texas but will not designate what region of the state it should be located in.
As reported by The Dallas Express last month, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said, “Texas is the birthplace of the integrated circuit, and we have since risen as the number one state in America for semiconductor manufacturing.”
In 2021, Gov. Abbott created the National Semiconductor Centers Texas Task Force to persuade the U.S. Department of Commerce to choose Texas for the NSTC, according to the DBJ.
“This is a national competition to design and build the future of semiconductors, and it is a race that Texas must win for our state, our workforce, our national security, and our future. With this legislation, Texas will not only remain number one in America for semiconductors — we will be number one in the world,” Abbott added.
Located one hour north of Dallas, Sherman is emerging as a national hub for semiconductor manufacturing.
Last May, Texas Instruments broke ground on its $30 billion semiconductor wafer fabrication plants in Sherman.
One month later, Taiwan-based global semiconductor company Global Wafers announced a $5 billion factory in Sherman, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce.
With recent geopolitical tensions rising in Taiwan, Cruz said that manufacturing semiconductors domestically is not only an economic boon for the U.S. but a national security issue.
“Right now, we are enormously dependent on foreign development of advanced semiconductors, and in particular, we are enormously dependent upon Taiwan,” Cruz said, per the DBJ.
“In today’s foreign policy context, Taiwan is in significant jeopardy from Chinese aggression, and I can tell you when our military engages in war games of dangerous potential developments, there’s no scenario more dangerous or more central to their planning right now than how to respond if China moves militarily on Taiwan.”