Dive Brief:
- GlobalFoundries has partnered with the U.S. Department of Energy’s Genesis Mission, which works with industry to leverage artificial intelligence to tackle challenges in energy, science and national security, the company said in a June 3 news release.
- The partnership will pair AI-enabled semiconductor design with GlobalFoundries’ U.S. manufacturing platform to “bridge the gap from research to prototype for next-generation computing initiatives,” per the news release.
- Areas of collaboration will include access to GlobalFoundries’ platforms and prototype fabrication through the company’s multiproject wafer program, among others.
Dive Insight:
This is the latest collaboration between GlobalFoundries and the federal government. The company has also partnered with the U.S. National Science Foundation on workforce development initiatives, the Department of Defense on efforts to strengthen the domestic microelectronics industrial base, and other agencies.
GlobalFoundries’ partnership with DOE’s Genesis Mission will give the agency’s federally funded research and development facilities, universities, industry partners and startups “a direct path from AI-enabled chip design to working prototype silicon” for advanced computing, the company said in a news release.
GlobalFoundries will work with DOE in several areas, including:
- AI-enabled semiconductor design
- Access to GlobalFoundries’ technology platforms, including process design kits, device models and design enablement resources for Genesis Mission-supported research teams
- Prototype fabrication through GlobalFoundries’ multiproject wafer program
- Support turning basic research into functional prototypes and pre-commercial designs
- Advancement of next-generation technologies, including silicon photonics for data centers and quantum computing for quantum-systems discovery
“American science is generating extraordinary ideas in AI and advanced computing. What’s been missing is the bridge from lab to fab,” Tom Caulfield, the company’s executive chairman, said in a statement. “By bringing our U.S. manufacturing platform, our [process design kits] and our multiproject wafer program to the Genesis Mission, we can give researchers a real path from concept to working silicon — and help the National Labs, universities and industry pull in the same direction.”
The Genesis Mission will address 26 national science and technology challenges. These encompass all of the agency’s core missions in “energy dominance, discovery science, and national security,” the DOE said on its website.
In addition, the Genesis Mission will build a “science and security platform,” the DOE said. The platform will integrate “high-performance computers, scientific experimental facilities, unique data resources and production capabilities into a single, coordinated AI-driven discovery system” that will increase scientific discoveries and bolster national security, it added.
GlobalFoundries has been working with various federal agencies on technology-related projects for several years. For example, in November 2024, the company announced a CHIPS and Science Act award of up to $1.5 billion to expand the company’s chip manufacturing and technology development in the U.S.
