US President Joe Biden met with key executives to discuss the global shortage of chips hitting automakers and urged Intel Corps to announce that it plans to launch chips for the next six to nine months for to make car factories at its factories.
During the meeting on Monday, Biden said he had dual support for legislation to fund the semiconductor industry. He had earlier announced plans to invest $ 50 billion in semiconductor manufacturing and research as part of his effort to rebuild US manufacturing under a $ 2 trillion infrastructure plan.
The global shortage of chips stems from a confluence of factors as carmakers, which shut down plants during the COVID-19 pandemic last year, compete against the sprawling consumer electronics industry for chips. The latter industry has experienced a boom as people spend more time at home.
Biden and his top advisers see the semiconductor shortage as a ‘top priority and immediate priority’, the White House said after the meeting.
Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger, who was in attendance at the meeting, told Reuters news agency that the company wanted to start manufacturing chips at its factories within six to nine months to address the shortage, which was assembling lines at some U.S. car factories. let diaper.
The supply of the stock could lead to a potential shortfall in production of 1.3 million units of U.S. cars and light trucks this year.
“We hope that some of these things can be alleviated without the need for a three- or four-year factory build, but maybe six months for new products to be certified on some of our existing processes,” Gelsinger said. “We have already started with some major component suppliers.”
Lift up
Intel announced plans last month to significantly increase the production of chips for outsiders as it builds new factories in the US and Europe. The talks with car suppliers announced on Monday are an acceleration of the plans.
The White House meeting included executives from 19 prominent companies, including Mary Barra, CEO of General Motors, Jim Farley, CEO of Ford Motor, and Carlos Tavares, CEO of Stellantis NV, at Chrysler. White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan, National Economic Council Director Brian Deese, and Trade Secretary Gina Raimondo also participated.
“Today, I received a letter from 23 senators, bipartisans and 42 members of the House, Republican and Democrat, supporting the slides for America’s program,” Biden said at the summit.
Intel offers hope to the automotive sector and says it can start making chips in six to nine months [File: Adam Glanzman/Bloomberg]
Managers of companies such as GlobalFoundries, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., AT&T, Samsung Electronics Co. and Google parent Alphabet Inc. were also present.
Participants stressed the importance of increasing transparency in the semiconductor supply chain to reduce current shortages and improve demand forecasting to avoid future challenges, the White House said in a statement.
They also “discussed the importance of encouraging additional semiconductor manufacturing capability in the United States to ensure that we never run a shortage again,” he said.
Participants discussed short- and long-term approaches to addressing the shortfall, but no immediate decision or announcement would likely come from the meeting, White House press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters.
According to an industry group, broadband, mobile and cable TV businesses are also experiencing delays in receiving “network switches, routers and servers”.
Special treatment?
Many of the policymakers who support additional funding for semiconductors want to see the measure in a stand-alone competitiveness bill aimed at China, not as part of Biden’s infrastructure package as is currently the case. The bill in China has dual support and could have a faster way through Congress.
But exactly how to spend and allocate semiconductor funding is a source of debate among automakers and other consumers of chips, as well as the semiconductor companies themselves.
Car manufacturers insist that a portion of the money be reserved for chips on vehicles, and warn against production shortages if their industry is not given preference.
Yet manufacturers of other electronic devices affected by the shortage of chips, such as computers and cell phones, have taken up the demands of the carmaker, worrying that their industries will suffer. The debate was also a factor in the White House meeting.
The White House has not taken a public stance on the issue, but has indicated private leaders of semiconductors will not support special treatment for one industry, the Bloomberg News Agency reported, citing people familiar with the matter.
Later this week, the Senate committee will hold its first hearing on a dual measure to bolster technological research and development efforts in an effort to address Chinese competition.
“Attempting to address crisis-by-crisis supply chains creates critical vulnerabilities in national security,” National Security Adviser Sullivan said in a statement.