As the AI chip war between the United States and China accelerates, the U.S. is turning to a southern ally to boost its chipmaking efforts: Mexico.
The U.S. State Department said Thursday it is partnering with the Mexican government to seek opportunities for expanding and diversifying chip development. The partnership will be powered by the International Technology Security and Innovation (ITSI) fund, a cash pile that comes from the CHIPS and Science Act passed by the Biden administration in 2022. The new collaboration “will help create a more resilient, secure, and sustainable global semiconductor value chain,” the State Department said in a statement.
During the partnership’s first phase, Mexico will assess its existing semiconductor ecosystem, as well as its regulatory framework, workforce, and infrastructure needs. Mexico’s state governments, academics, researchers, and companies will work with the Secretariat of Economy — Mexico’s federal economic and financial agency — in the review. The assessment will allow the two nations to determine potential joint initiatives in the future. Neither the U.S. State Department nor Mexico’s Secretariat of Economy immediately responded to a request for comment on the partnership.
“The United States and Mexico are key partners in ensuring the global semiconductor supply chain keeps pace with the digital transformation underway worldwide,” the U.S. State Department said in a statement. “This collaboration between the United States and Mexico underscores the significant potential to expand Mexico’s semiconductor industry to the benefit of both nations and will build on existing cooperation under the bilateral High-Level Economic Dialogue and trilateral North American Leaders Summit process.”
The CHIPS keep coming
While this marks the first international partnership under the CHIPS Act, the United States has already poured billions into semiconductor production — but to American tech companies. The latest in CHIPS-sponsored announcements is an $8.5 billion investment in semiconductor manufacturer Intel. To accompany the funding, the chipmaker has said it plans to invest over $100 billion over the next five years to expand U.S. semiconductor manufacturing with sites in Arizona, New Mexico, Ohio, and Oregon.
Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger said the chipmaker wants to build “the largest AI chip manufacturing site in the world” on empty land near Columbus, Ohio as part of its plan. The U.S. produces less than 10% of the world’s chips today, according to the White House.