Dive Brief:
- New York-based GlobalFoundries has expanded its partnership with Japanese chipmaker Renesas Electronics Corp. as demand grows for smart vehicles and automated industrial systems.
- The multibillion-dollar collaboration broadens Renesas’ access to GlobalFoundries technologies, including its FDX FD-SOI, BCD and CMOS platforms with memory features, according to a news release. Tape-outs under the expanded partnership are expected to begin in mid-2026.
- The initiative is part of a broader effort to strengthen U.S. semiconductor manufacturing while providing secure production options for Renesas. It comes as the auto industry looks to avoid another chip shortage.
Dive Insight:
As demand grows for more intelligent electric vehicles and automated factories, companies are looking for more powerful chips that can enable radar for driver assistance functions, manage battery systems and ensure connectivity for industrial sensors, GlobalFoundries and Renesas said.
The trouble is, despite heavy investments in new facilities, manufacturing is still catching up to demand. Tech industry leaders Tim Cook and Elon Musk recently warned about an emerging global crisis tied to a memory chip shortage shortage driven by the AI data center boom, Bloomberg reported. Honda and others in the automotive industry are also starting to brace for renewed setbacks after a chip shortage fueled by the pandemic.
“The automotive landscape is changing fast,” GlobalFoundries CEO Tim Breen said in a statement. “Semiconductors are now the foundation of innovation…and GF’s differentiated platforms are built for that.”
GlobalFoundries and Renesas are looking to address supply challenges through the expanded partnership, starting with manufacturing in the United States, then extending to facilities in Germany and Singapore. The companies are also exploring using GlobalFoundries’ process technologies in Renesas’ fabs in Japan.
“We’re focused on delivering what matters most: reliable supply and the technologies that enable the vehicles of tomorrow,” Breen said.
In addition to its semiconductor business, GlobalFoundries is building out its physical AI capabilities. In January, the company struck a deal to acquire Synopsys’ processor intellectual property solutions business. The deal is expected to close in the second half of 2026.
Meanwhile, Renesas is making internal changes to help drive sales. In June, the company pushed back its goal to triple revenue, bumping it by five years to 2035, after one of its U.S. partners, Wolfspeed, filed for bankruptcy. Renesas has since made leadership and strategic changes in an effort to become a leading embedded semiconductor solution supplier. Earlier this month, the company agreed to sell its timing business to partner SiTime Corp. in Santa Clara, California, to further sharpen its focus.
“Access to a broader range of GF technologies gives us the flexibility and supply assurance our customers need,” Renesas CEO Hidetoshi Shibata said in a statement about the expanded partnership with GlobalFoundries.
“These capabilities are essential as we deliver advanced solutions, with demand for electrification and connectivity — and the rapidly growing computer requirements driven by AI applications — accelerating worldwide,” Shibata added.
