U.S. Department of Commerce

U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina M. Raimondo released the following statement after the Biden-Harris Administration announced actions to address the significant increased use of the de minimis exemption, in particular from Chinese e-commerce platforms, and to protect American consumers, workers, retailers, importers, and manufacturers. 

“American workers and businesses can outcompete anyone on a level playing field, but for too long, Chinese e-commerce platforms have skirted tariffs by abusing the de minimis exemption,” said Secretary Raimondo. “With these new actions, the Biden-Harris Administration is standing up for American consumers and cracking down on Chinese companies’ efforts to undercut American workers and businesses. I’m proud of the Commerce Department’s work with interagency partners to develop these new proposed rules that would promote consumer safety, prevent unfair trade practices, and protect American workers and industries.”

A shipment is generally eligible for the de minimis exemption if the aggregate fair retail value of the articles imported is $800 or less. De minimis shipments enter the United States with less information than other imports and are not subject to tariffs. Over the last ten years, the number of shipments entering the United States under the de minimis exemption has increased significantly from approximately 140 million a year to over one billion a year, with nearly four million entering the United States every day in 2023. This exponential increase in de minimis shipments makes it more challenging to enforce U.S. trade laws, health and safety requirements, intellectual property rights, and consumer protection rules, and to block illicit synthetic drugs such as fentanyl and synthetic drug raw materials and machinery from entering the country.

For more information on the Commerce Department and the rest of the Biden-Harris Administration’s actions, see HERE.

Thank you, Assistant Secretary Harris. Thanks to chairs Ursula and Jeff, and to our speakers.

Yesterday we held our inaugural Supply Chain Summit, and it was a great moment to reflect on how far we’ve come.

Following the COVID supply chain challenges, we embraced a whole of government approach to address supply chain gaps. It’s truly remarkable to see what has happened in the last four year – not just with the supply chain center – but across the range of government and private sector tools.

I’d like to take some time today to celebrate successes – and hear from you what you’ve learned in the last four years. But then we need to get back to work and talk about what the next phase of our work should entail.

First, the successes:

The Biden-Harris Administration had a strategy to address these challenges and ignite growth. 

Our belief is that the federal government must set the strategic direction and create the conditions for growth. We need to lay the foundation for the private sector to do what the private sector does best – innovate, push the growth frontier, and drive U.S. competitiveness.

Congress gave us a brand-new set of tools to achieve those goals. CHIPS and IRA focused on changing incentives for the private sector. Through tax credits, investments, loans, and procurement policies, we are changing the economic calculus so the private sector can take risks in the areas where we have set strategic priorities.

We’re seeing early signs of success.

Investment: Construction of factories has more than doubled since 2021. Private sector investment in manufacturing is at the highest level since World War II business investment in equipment, and software has been beating forecasters’ expectations.

CHIPS: In the two years since the CHIPS and Science Act became law, America has become a magnet for private sector investments in semiconductor manufacturing and innovation. The United States is now expected to grow its share of global leading-edge logic manufacturing to 28% by 2032 – up from 0% when the law was passed.

IRA: Is triggering a clean energy boom along the supply chain of EVs, for example.

This is all great. But there is obviously more work to do.

I worry about PRC oversupply undermining our investments. From legacy chips to lithium, we see serious risks. And I’m not sure we currently have the best tools to address these concerns.

I’m concerned that OEMs are not actually pricing in resilience but counting on long-term government subsidies to provide them U.S.-produced inputs at a China-price.

You all have put two critical issues front and center: Data Center supply chains and Buy America provisions for semiconductor supply chains. These are both clear areas where we have more work to do.

So, I'd like to start by asking you some questions:

When you reflect on the last four years, what do you think we’ve done really well? Where do you see success?

What still keeps you up a night?  What do you think we need to focus on next?

Department unveils first-of-its kind diagnostic supply chain risk assessment tool as Secretary Raimondo and Deputy Secretary Graves highlight how the Commerce Department is working to make America’s supply chains more resilient.

Today, the U.S. Department of Commerce, in collaboration with the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR), hosted the inaugural Supply Chain Summit. Bringing together leaders from government, industry, academia, and civil society, the Summit highlighted the work of the Biden-Harris Administration and industry to shift from reacting to global supply chain disruptions to proactively strengthening supply chain resilience.

“The Biden-Harris Administration knows securing American supply chains is vital to protecting our national security and enhancing our economic competitiveness,” said U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo. “By working with industry and taking an analytical, proactive approach, we are working to prevent the kind of supply chain failures that drove up costs for Americans during the pandemic and to create new economic opportunities for communities across the nation.”  

“The actions we’re taking at the Commerce Department to secure our supply chains are possible because of the work we’ve done since day one to leverage our innovative expertise and capabilities to put risk assessment and resiliency at the forefront of our commercial engagement,” said Deputy Secretary of Commerce Don Graves. “We remember the dark days of COVID and what it felt like when medical devices, PPE, critical technologies, and everyday household appliances were out of reach. That’s why mitigating the impact was step one and turning reactive policies into proactive policies became our second chapter, which is precisely what was on display at the Supply Chain Summit.”

At the Summit, as part of the Biden-Harris Administration's ongoing commitment to strengthening supply chains, the Department of Commerce’s Supply Chain Center unveiled a first-of-its kind diagnostic supply chain risk assessment tool—known as SCALE—which utilizes a comprehensive set of indicators to assess structural supply chain risk across the U.S. economy. The SCALE tool, coupled with the Industry and Analysis business unit’s deep industry expertise, will enable the U.S. Government to be more proactive and strategic in addressing supply chain risk. The tool compares risks across industries and provides an in-depth assessment of what is driving those risks. SCALE will help inform U.S. government decision-making, and can facilitate data-driven conversations with industry on risks, opportunities, and actions that can advance supply chain resilience.

“To be proactive, we need the right insights and ideas, and we need to make data more actionable,” said Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Industry and Analysis Grant Harris. “SCALE is a first-of-its-kind analytics tool because it revolutionizes our ability to understand systemic supply chain vulnerabilities that pose risks to U.S. economic and national security.” 

The Summit featured notable speakers including, Secretary Raimondo, Deputy Secretary of Commerce Don Graves, Deputy Secretary of Energy David Turk, Deputy National Security Advisor Anne Neuberger, Deputy National Security Advisor Daleep Singh, Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Industry & Analysis Grant Harris, and Ambassador Michael Froman. These and other leaders addressed the critical role supply chain resilience plays in U.S. economic and national security, and the role of public-private cooperation in driving these efforts forward.

To further bolster global supply chain resilience, the U.S. Department of Commerce also announced seven new strategic partnerships with key stakeholders across industry and academia. These partnerships will help the Department promote the global competitiveness of U.S. industry, help businesses become more resilient, and make its supply chain work all the more innovative and impactful. The International Trade Administration also announced a competitive process to develop new data or analysis that can be used to expand the indicators of risk incorporated into the SCALE tool.

The Department of Commerce is committed to advancing the outcomes of the 2024 Supply Chain Summit.  The Supply Chain Center and our Industry & Analysis team will continue to work closely with industry leaders, small businesses, and international partners to build more resilient, sustainable, and diverse supply chains.

For more information about the key outcomes of the 2024 Supply Chain Summit, please review the policy actions outlined in the Supply Chain Resilience Fact Sheet.

At the Supply Chain Summit, the Department of Commerce announced that the following actions will be undertaken by the Industry & Analysis (I&A) business unit within the International Trade Administration:

New efforts to build the U.S. Government’s analytical capacity to understand and address supply chain risk:  

Launched SCALE Tool: Department of Commerce’s Supply Chain Center unveiled a first-of-its kind diagnostic supply chain risk assessment tool—known as SCALE—which utilizes a comprehensive set of indicators to assess structural supply chain risk across the U.S. economy.  The SCALE tool, coupled with the I&A’s deep industry expertise, will enable the U.S. Government to be more proactive and strategic in addressing supply chain risk. The tool compares risks across industries and provides an in-depth assessment of what is driving those risks. SCALE will inform U.S. government decision-making and can facilitate data-driven conversations with industry on risks, opportunities, and actions that can advance supply chain resilience.

SCALE Tool Findings: During the Summit, Assistant Secretary Grant Harris shared how the Supply Chain Center developed SCALE and highlighted its intended use cases. Looking ahead, the Center will release key findings from the SCALE tool, coupled with relevant insights from I&A’s industry experts, and engage industry and other key stakeholders on the results.

SCALE Tool Data Competition:  I&A plans to launch a competition aimed at developing new data or analysis that can be used to expand the indicators of risk incorporated into the SCALE tool. 

Expanded engagement with industry and other key stakeholders:

Convening on AI Data Centers: This fall, Secretary Raimondo will convene industry to discuss risks associated with the supply chains for AI data centers, focused on the products and industries identified by I&A stakeholder engagement, in-house expertise, and the SCALE tool. The convening will bring both upstream and downstream suppliers and customers together to assess current and future bottlenecks and risky dependencies, all while helping to inform recommendations on steps both industry and government can take to mitigate identified risks.

Industry Supply Chain Tabletop Exercises: In 2025, I&A will conduct two tabletop exercises with industry to better understand opportunities to address structural supply chain risks faced by the United States. One exercise will focus on supply chain risks in the chemicals industry; the second will focus on an emerging technology where it is critical the United States maintain a strategic advantage.  

New Strategic Partnerships: At the Summit, seven new strategic partnerships with key stakeholders across industry and academia were announced. These partnerships will help the Department promote the global competitiveness of U.S. industry, help businesses become more resilient, and make its supply chain work more innovative and impactful. The new partners are:

• National Small Business Association
• Association for Supply Chain Management
• Council for Supply Chain Management Professionals
• Institute for Supply Management
• Industry Studies Association
• Carnegie Mellon University
• Georgetown University

2025 Supply Chain Summit: I&A will host another Supply Chain Summit in 2025. The Summit will bring together government, industry, and other stakeholders to examine continual progress made in increasing American supply chain resiliency. The date of the Summit will be announced in the months ahead.

Thank you to the Association of Economists of Puerto Rico for hosting today. I look forward to discussing research opportunities to advance economic measurement and building statistical capacity by leveraging the newly established Federal Statistical Research Data Center (FSRDC) here in Puerto Rico.

People often think of the Department of Commerce as the Department of Business, but we’re much more than that. We’re the Department of data, science, technology, people, and communities.

Day-to-day funding and public policy decisions rely on data collected from the Census Bureau. For Puerto Rico, policymakers and key stakeholders often operate with a lack of comprehensive data about the Puerto Rican people and your economy.

There’s been a lot of deep interest in obtaining equitable access to measures and statistics for Puerto Rico and the FSRDC is an affirming step in the right direction.

Demographic and socioeconomic data is critical for data in evidence-driven decisions, but the Census Bureau faces many challenges in the archipelago, particularly the lack of data infrastructure -- including updated standards, methodology, technical capacity and data practices. In most cases, the U.S. Census Bureau needs data inputs from states and local governments (i.e., they furnish the data to be included in national statistics), however, in many cases the Government of Puerto Rico is not able to provide the data – for many reasons, generally for lack of data quality or availability.

Both federal and local stakeholders have expressed deep interest in obtaining equitable access to measures and statistics for Puerto Rico, something more comparable to what the Census Bureau is able produce for the stateside.

When President Biden established the Puerto Rico Economic Dialogue in 2021, we developed four pillars with concrete actions and deliverables that the Census Bureau has a played a huge role in. Of these four pillars – strengthening human capital and workforce development, investing in infrastructure, building a diversified economy, and improving governance and data – the FSRDC is critical to accomplishing that fourth pillar.

Access to FSRDC data will enhance the statistical capacity on the island and enable local officials, industry leaders and third sector to make more informed, timely data-driven decisions. It will also allow local academics to address previously unanswerable research questions.

The Puerto Rico FSRDC will play a crucial role in enhancing the statistical capacity on the island, enabling local officials to make more informed, data-driven decisions, and allowing academics to explore critical research topics regarding the economy of Puerto Rico. As part of a network of 33 other centers across the United States, the PR FSRDC will contribute to deepening our understanding of the population and economy of the United States and its territories.

I look forward to a fruitful discussion.

Thank you for that introduction. Hello everyone! I’m so pleased to be back in Puerto Rico to join you all to mark this exciting occasion. I’d like to thank the Platform for Social Impact for hosting us today, and for their important work in bringing prosperity back to Puerto Rico.

As many of you know, since the start of the Biden-Harris Administration, the Department of Commerce has spearheaded a historic whole-of-government effort across 17 federal government agencies that have resulted in over $140 billion in federal obligations for Puerto Rico. As President Biden’s Puerto Rico Economic Growth Coordinator, I understand just how fundamental those funding dollars are to the communities that call this place home.

And that funding isn’t limited to recovery and resiliency efforts following disasters like Hurricane Maria. We also carved out funding for the archipelago in landmark legislation signed into law by President Biden. And that’s what brings us here today.

We’re excited to announce that the Oasis Expansion Recompete Plan, led by the Platform for Social Impact, will receive approximately $30 million to invest in comprehensive economic development initiatives in the Villa Prades community here in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

The Oasis Expansion Recompete Plan focuses its impact in the Villa Prades neighborhood, where residents face wage shortages and a lack of opportunity and support that they need to provide for themselves and their loved ones. Today’s announcement of the Recompete project, as well as the groundbreaking of the new Oasis Hub project, aim to directly confront this.

Many residents in this community are seeking to join the workforce or become entrepreneurs, and with this funding, the Platform for Social Impact will enable wraparound services such as workforce training, entrepreneurship programs, child and elder care, housing, healthcare and social safety net initiatives, and other projects that target economic mobility – both for working age adults and their families. With such a skyrocketing workforce shortage, this investment will also accelerate reconstruction efforts on this Island.

This is what the Recompete Program is all about. Funded through the CHIPS & Science Act, this program centers the Administration’s core belief that we’re stronger when more places have thriving, opportunity-rich economies, and that with the right resources and opportunities, all communities can achieve this.

This funding was awarded through our Economic Development Administration’s Distressed Areas Recompete Pilot Program, a $200 million competition focused on economic distress across the country.

To put today’s announcement in perspective, the Recompete Program was an incredibly competitive application process nationwide and this award, along with five others, represent the top 1% of applicants being selected. The rigor of our selection process should give confidence to current and future partners about the vision PSI is forging.

And that funding isn’t the only public investment kickstarting transformative change. Today, we’re also celebrating the co-investment of over $130 million in funding from the Government of Puerto Rico and the City of San Juan to support the Recompete initiative. I’d like to thank Governor Pierluisi, Mayor Romero, and members of the Governor’s Cabinet for this significant joint commitment.

One thing this absolutely clear: this initiative is exactly the type of place-based economic development President Biden and Vice President Harris have been championing – where resources have been concentrated, teams have been allocated, and community stakeholders have been included. And the results of this will be resounding: thousands of new jobs, and unprecedented levels of economic growth right here in Puerto Rico.

The work is far from over, but if there’s one thing I’ve learned during my time supporting Puerto Rico’s economic recovery, it’s that this work is more effective and robust when we do it together. The Department of Commerce, alongside President Biden and Vice President Harris, look forward to continuing to help chart a prosperous path forward with the Platform for Social Impact so that all Puerto Ricans can lead lives of dignity.

This week, U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo announced the appointment of 4 new experts to the National Artificial Intelligence Advisory Committee (NAIAC), which advises the President and the White House on a range of issues related to artificial intelligence (AI). 

The committee, launched in 2022, provides recommendations on topics including the current state of U.S. AI competitiveness, the state of science around AI, and AI workforce issues. The committee also is responsible for advice regarding the management and coordination of the initiative itself, including its balance of activities and funding.

“Empowering our nation’s top talent in AI across academia, industry, non-profits and civil society is fundamental to the responsible development and deployment of this generation-defining technology. That’s why NAIAC’s work is so critical to our collaborative effort to mitigate the risks so we can harness the benefits of artificial intelligence,” said Secretary Raimondo. “These new committee members represent some of the best in their field, and I am confident will play an important part in helping NAIAC to meet its mission to provide the expertise and guidance necessary to maintain U.S. global leadership on AI.”

This announcement follows the first 27 appointments to the National AI Advisory Committee in 2022 after its establishment in response to the National AI Initiative Act of 2020. The committee members were nominated by the public as expert leaders from a broad and interdisciplinary range of AI-relevant disciplines from across academia, industry, non-profits and civil society.

The newly appointed members include:

• Aneesh Chopra, Chief Strategy Officer of Arcadia; previously, he served as the first U.S. Chief Technology Officer and Virginia’s Secretary of Technology.
• Christopher Howard, Executive vice president and chief operating officer of ASU; he is a distinguished graduate of the U.S. Air Force Academy and earned a doctorate in politics as a Rhodes Scholar from the University of Oxford and an MBA with distinction from Harvard Business School.
• Angie Cooper, Executive Vice President of Heartland Forward; previously she worked in international and domestic public policy and government affairs for Walmart Stores, Inc., most recently as senior director of global public policy.
• Beth Cobert, former President of the Markle Foundation; previously she served as Acting Director of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) and Deputy Director for Management at the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).

Committee members will serve three-year terms and may serve two consecutive terms at the discretion of the secretary. The Department of Commerce’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) provides administrative support to the committee. For more information on the NAIAC and its responsibilities, visit ai.gov/naiac.

Today, U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo met with First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy of Ukraine Yulia Svyrydenko. During the meeting, Secretary Raimondo re-affirmed the Biden-Harris Administration’s commitment to Ukraine’s sovereignty and the Department of Commerce’s commitment to supporting Ukraine in its response to Russia’s continued aggression. They discussed Under Secretary of Commerce for International Trade Marisa Lago’s recent visit to Kyiv, and the Department of Commerce’s engagements with the U.S. private sector on Ukraine’s defense, reconstruction and recovery objectives.

Hello everyone! Thank you for the warm welcome from Mayor Robinson and Administrator Hall. I am so pleased to be here in Lake City with my friend, and one of the great leaders of this country, Congressman Clyburn, to celebrate this significant milestone for disaster relief in South Carolina.

Communities in this state are unfortunately no stranger to extreme weather, and like so many other states across the country, the need for robust disaster relief resources could not be greater.

President Biden and Vice President Harris understand that when we protect our communities from the impact of natural disasters and shore up their recovery capabilities, we foster stronger economies, mitigate devastation, and save lives.

At the Department of Commerce, we are focused on creating an economy that works for all Americans, and building resilient infrastructure is key to getting us there.

That’s why our Economic Development Administration has announced the awarding of a $13.5 million grant to Lake City, South Carolina, for water infrastructure improvements needed to support local businesses.

This grant will alleviate flooding in the city, helping to reduce structural and economic damage to businesses, homes, and infrastructure. EDA’s investment will also be matched with $1.3 million dollars in local funds, demonstrating the commitment of this community and the critical importance of partnerships at all levels of government.

This project is one of many funded by legislation championed by leaders like Congressman Clyburn and as a result, nearly half a billion dollars in additional funds were provided to EDA to bolster disaster relief and recovery for areas just like here in Lake City.

Investments like these are crucial in the wake of natural disasters. Just a few short weeks ago, Hurricane Debby passed through and brought torrential rainfall. It’s a clear reminder that the devastating impacts of climate change are here right now and we must act accordingly. That’s why we’re proud to partner with Lake City to protect your economic future.

This type of extreme weather can take a disastrous toll people’s lives and livelihoods, and hinder their ability to lead lives of dignity, but make no mistake: the Biden-Harris Administration is on a mission to change that.

Our goal is not simply to help rebuild disaster impacted areas, but also to help chart this country’s course toward increased economic growth and opportunity – because when America’s communities are protected, its economy prospers. We’re creating an economy where your zip code doesn’t determine your destiny and we’re doing that by making historic investments across the nation that will give communities the launch pad they need to compete and thrive in the 21st century, and create good-paying, family sustaining jobs for the young people in the audience here today.

We’re employing strategies that center equity, so that minority and underserved communities can fully participate in these new opportunities. EDA’s Tech Hub and Recompete Programs, for example, are designed to supercharge innovation – ensuring that the economic benefits of these investments flow through all our communities, not just some. Our Internet for All Initiative is connecting households and businesses across the country to reliable, high-speed internet so that no family has to choose which of their children gets to finish their homework because their bandwidth is limited, and so that small businesses can access a broad market of customers to grow their enterprise, and so that our seniors — no matter how far they live from a doctor —- can always access telehealth when they need it.

This Administration—and our partners in Congress like Congressman Clyburn – have been working around the clock to meet you and your communities where you are, helping you take center stage in policy decisions that affect your daily lives.

I’m excited to see these resources make a real, measurable impact for this city and for this state, and I look forward to working with Congressman Clyburn and leaders across the state to ensure South Carolinian’s safety, security, and success.

Hello everyone! I’m pleased to be here in Rosemont, celebrating this investment with you all.  Thank you to the Sustainability Institute for hosting this event and bringing together this coalition of local and state leaders, including Mayor Cogswell, Mayor Burgess, and Representative Wetmore.  The importance of this work to advance sustainability in South Carolina can’t be overstated.

I would also like to extend a special thanks to my friend Congressman Clyburn –one of our country’s greatest leaders – who could not be here today but is an incredible partner and steadfast advocate for his constituents.

The Biden Harris Administration is committed to ensuring that every community across the country is on a path toward long term prosperity and success. By  making targeted investments designed with your greatest needs in mind, we are one step closer to a stronger and more sustainable tomorrow.

Key to that mission is climate resiliency and ensuring that underrepresented communities have every opportunity to adapt and thrive in our rapidly changing world.

What we know now more than ever is that underserved communities are often the hardest hit by climate change and in low country, access to essential services can be cut off at the first sign of high tide.

That’s why NOAA is committing significant resources to efforts right here in South Carolina that directly support habitat restoration. And this is where The Sustainability Institute comes into the picture.

As a recipient of the Tribes and Underserved Communities Habitat Restoration grant from NOAA, the Sustainability Institute will

• Invest in coastal restoration and climate resilience work along the South Carolina coast, 
• And provide employment opportunities to local community members.

This investment is part of a $45 million dollar commitment supporting 27 different efforts in all corners of our country, funded through landmark legislation, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and the Inflation Reduction Act, which were championed by Congressman Clyburn and signed into law by President Biden.

When we uplift communities in need, we all benefit. This work saves lives and secures livelihoods, and it wouldn’t be possible without the leaders alongside me today or the community members who are dedicated to realizing a brighter future for themselves and their loved ones.

We look forward to strengthening our partnership with The Sustainability Institute and continuing to build an economy that works for all South Carolinians, and Americans, together.

Good morning. Thank you to Isaiah Wonnenberg with the Commercial Spaceflight Federation and Frank Jannuzi from the Mansfield Foundation for organizing this event along with their partners from ASTEC. 

The U.S.-Japan relationship has special meaning to me. In 1860, my three-times great-grandfather, James Wormley, a hotelier and small businessman in Washington, DC, hosted and catered the first Japanese Commission to visit the United States.

This meeting – 164 years later – comes at a time when the U.S.-Japan relationship has never been stronger and more important, not only for our two countries but for the Indo-Pacific and the world.

The United States is undertaking unprecedented efforts with partners in the region to realize the vision of an Indo-Pacific that is, in President Biden’s words, “open, connected, prosperous, resilient, and secure.”

To this end, the Administration and the Commerce Department are doing three things:

First, we are making strategic domestic investments while also deepening commercial ties with our allies in critical and emerging domains, like space, that will have an outsized impact on our economies.

Second, we are taking steps to protect our national security by fostering trusted tech ecosystems, combating economic coercion, and preventing malign actors from using sensitive goods and technologies to undermine our national security and the security of our partners and allies.

Third, we are expanding our engagement, along with the private sector, in the Global South to offer our partners more attractive infrastructure alternatives to help meet their most pressing economic needs.

In each of these areas, the relationships between the United States and Japan are not only indispensable in ensuring our own success, but also for security and prosperity in the rest of the world.

We at the Department of Commerce are thrilled to be at the forefront of U.S. efforts to grow the space economy.

We have reorganized and elevated our Office of Space Commerce, under Director Richard DalBello, who has decades of experience in the industry.

Two years ago, we formed the Commercial Space Coordination Committee. It includes the heads of nearly every Commerce bureau, because our work expanding space commerce isn’t confined to one office, but involves international trade, economic development, broadband-expansion efforts, cybersecurity expertise, and even minority business outreach to expand our supplier base.

We have organized our space commerce efforts into five areas of focus.

First, we are working to coordinate regulatory functions.

In order to invest and compete, businesses need clarity, consistency, and transparency. We have strongly supported Vice President Harris’s work through the National Space Council to ensure the United States establishes a clear, modern, and comprehensive regulatory framework.

We have also increased and sped up our licensing of commercial remote sensing satellites and eliminated more than 40 operating restrictions that had previously been imposed on U.S. imaging satellites, with plans to remove even more restrictions in the near future. This streamlining has reduced the average time to issue a license from 48 days in 2020 to 14 days today – a 70% reduction.

Second, we are growing the customer base for U.S. commercial space goods and services.

Many of you took part in last year’s Track 1.5 session during the U.S.-Japan Comprehensive Space Dialogue in Tokyo. We have similar engagements with Korea, India, Singapore, the UK, the Quad, and others. As we grow these relationships, we also grow opportunities for the expansion of space commerce.

And there is no U.S. partner better than Japan who understands the market conditions necessary for entering advanced technology markets like space. 

So, it’s crucial that we coordinate and partner as other countries look to our example, especially emerging players in the Global South.

Third, we are improving space safety and sustainability.

Space situational awareness, or SSA, is an essential element of space traffic coordination for spaceflight safety and the sustainability of Earth’s increasingly congested orbits. In 2018, the Commerce Department was assigned responsibility for providing basic SSA services to commercial and civil space operators, a major new mission area that we are taking over from the Department of Defense. With thousands of new satellites now being launched each year, we recognize the urgency of fulfilling this mission to prevent the next catastrophic collision in space.

In the past year, we have made strides in building what we are calling our Traffic Coordination System for Space, or TraCSS. This system will enable commercial growth by providing the data and alerts needed to keep space operations safe and sustainable.

In addition, we are being very careful not to compete with the burgeoning commercial SSA market, but rather to leverage commercially available SSA software, data, and analytics to support our system.

We are nearing the launch of the TraCSS system at the end of September and look forward to coordinating with our counterparts in Japan to provide accurate and consistent alerts and warnings to operators in both our countries.

Our fourth area of focus is about promoting innovation, which is foundational to everything we do at the Commerce Department.

As part of this work, we are buying commercially available satellite data to improve weather forecasting while at the same time fostering the growth of new markets for satellite services.

We also know that next-generation satellite systems – and new space enterprises built to service and work with those systems – are going to need spectrum to develop to their full potential. We are doing all that we can with the  Federal Communications Commission and the International Telecommunication Union to ensure that spectrum is available both for federal and private sector missions.

Finally, we are advancing Earth observation capabilities to empower better decision making.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has been reimagining what its weather forecasting and climate monitoring satellite architecture could look like and has engaged with the community and issued study contracts to develop a more advanced and agile architecture in Low Earth Orbit and for space weather. We are building on-ramps for new technology and opening the door to more data purchases, rideshares, and hosted payloads.

Through all of this, I hope it’s clear that the Commerce Department sees the Trans-Pacific commercial space industry as vital to our country’s continued global competitiveness.

We’re eager to hear about the outcomes from today’s meeting and any subsequent engagements that come from this U.S.-Japan network of commercial space operators, because if we are going to grow U.S. and Japanese commercial space businesses, then we need to keep hearing from commercial space businesses.

And it is this dialogue that will facilitate the clarity, consistency, and transparency that will allow our countries to build their competitive edge in the new commercial space economy. Thank you for your time, and best wishes for today’s dialogue.

Proposed Investment Would Support Expansion and Modernization of Existing Campus and Create Over 250 Manufacturing and Construction Jobs

Today, the Biden-Harris Administration announced that the Department of Commerce and HP Inc. have signed a non-binding preliminary memorandum of terms (PMT) to provide up to $50 million in proposed direct funding under the CHIPS and Science Act. The proposed funding would support the expansion and modernization of HP’s existing facility in Corvallis, Oregon, which is part of the company’s “lab-to-fab” ecosystem in the region that spans from research and development (“R&D”) activities to commercial manufacturing operations. President Biden and Vice President Harris championed the CHIPS and Science Act, a key component of the Investing in America agenda, to usher in a new era of semiconductor manufacturing in the United States, bringing with it a revitalized domestic supply chain, good-paying jobs, and investments in the industries of the future. Through this proposed investment, the Biden-Harris Administration would enhance U.S. technological leadership by driving innovation of groundbreaking semiconductor technologies that serve important end markets, notably including life sciences instrumentation and technology hardware used in artificial intelligence applications.

Rooted in HP’s unique expertise in microfluidics and microelectromechanical systems (“MEMS”), the company’s innovative technology provides a unique pathway to drive improved performance and efficiency of semiconductor-based hardware. Among other products, the proposed funding would support the manufacturing of silicon devices that are key components of life sciences lab equipment which are used in drug discovery, single-cell research, and cell line development. By leveraging HP’s capabilities in microfluidics and MEMS, these devices allow for increased speed and precision during life sciences R&D. The company’s devices serve important focus areas for public health initiatives, and enable performance efficiencies for partner institutions across academia, government, and the private sector including Harvard Medical School, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and Merck.

“The Biden-Harris Administration’s proposed investment in HP shows how we are investing in every part of the semiconductor supply chain and how important semiconductor technology is to innovation in drug discovery and critical life science equipment,” said U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo. “Thanks to President Biden and Vice President Harris’s leadership, the United States will continue leading the world in innovative breakthroughs which all require advanced semiconductor technology while also generating economic opportunity.”

“The Biden-Harris administration continues to deliver on our promise to bring a strong semiconductor ecosystem back to the United States and create good-paying jobs as seen by today’s investment. America invented the chip, and our nation’s ingenuity has always driven us forward,” said Natalie Quillian, White House Deputy Chief of Staff. “HP has long been a part of this great history of American innovation, and thanks to President Biden’s CHIPS and Science Act, we are ensuring that America continues to lead the next generation of technologies.” 

The proposed project would build on the company’s 47-year presence in Corvallis and commitment to the local workforce – specifically, the project is estimated to create nearly 150 construction jobs and over 100 manufacturing jobs. The company’s construction partner, Andersen Construction, has entered into a Project Labor Agreement (PLA) for this project. HP plays a pivotal role in the National Science Foundation Engines Development Program–Advancing Semiconductor Technologies in the Northwest to grow the semiconductor industry through strategic opportunities in innovation, entrepreneurship, research, manufacturing, workforce training, and more. Further, HP is working with Portland Community College on training and recruitment programs and has representatives currently serving on a technical advisory council for Linn-Benton Community College. HP has also voluntarily adopted the CHIPS Women in Construction Framework and will work with contractors, trade unions, and other community and workforce partners to implement best practices aimed at expanding the construction workforce by increasing the participation of women and economically disadvantaged individuals.

“It is imperative that we continue to curate and grow a U.S. semiconductor ecosystem where fabs are receiving the latest technology onshore, and then bringing those innovations to market. This all happens with proposed investments in companies like HP,” said Under Secretary of Commerce for Standards and Technology and National Institute of Standards and Technology Director Laurie E. Locascio. “The opportunity that companies such as HP have to push our industry further than we’ve ever gone before is inspiring, motivating and an incredible moment to be a part of. This is all possible thanks to President Biden and Vice President Harris’s CHIPS and Science Act, which is helping position the United States as a global leader for efficiently bringing chips from idea to market and permanently revolutionizing our manufacturing capabilities.”

“This proposed investment provides HP with an opportunity to modernize and expand our facility to further invest in our microfluidics technology, which is the study of the behavior and control of fluid on a microscopic scale. Microfluidics has the potential to drive revolutionary changes across industries, delivering speed, efficiency, and precision, to help pave the way for the next generation of innovation in life sciences and technology. We would like to thank the Biden-Harris Administration and Secretary Raimondo for this proposed investment, as well as the Oregon congressional delegation and state leader for their support and advocacy throughout this process. We look forward to continuing to work to accelerate our innovation in microfluidics and MEMS technology while expanding our manufacturing and R&D capabilities in Corvallis, all made possible by President Biden and Vice President Harris’s CHIPS and Science Act,” said Enrique Lores, President and CEO, HP.

The development and expansion facilitated by the proposed funding would bolster the lab-to-fab ecosystem that HP has established in Corvallis, which also serves as one of three R&D Centers for Excellence within the company’s global footprint. In addition to continued domestic investment in the company’s internal research and development, HP has opened its Corvallis campus to collaborative R&D efforts with academic institutions and startups. Of note, HP donated a 25-year lease of a portion of its Corvallis campus to Oregon State University (OSU) – this 80,000 sq. ft. manufacturing and R&D facility has incubated 39 different companies, including 20 that spun out from OSU faculty and students. The Corvallis campus provides resources and tools for startups and entrepreneurs to build innovative products locally in Oregon and provides an opportunity for these companies to grow and reinvest in the domestic ecosystem.

Additionally, HP aims to use 100% renewable electricity to power its global operations by 2025. The company has indicated that it plans to claim the Department of the Treasury’s Investment Tax Credit, which is expected to be up to 25% of qualified capital expenditures.

As explained in its first Notice of Funding Opportunity, the Department of Commerce may offer applicants a PMT on a non-binding basis after satisfactory completion of the merit review of a full application. The PMT outlines key terms for a potential CHIPS incentives award, including the amount and form of the award. The award amounts are subject to due diligence and negotiation of award documents and are conditional on the achievement of certain milestones. After a PMT is signed, the Department of Commerce begins a comprehensive due diligence process on the proposed projects and continues negotiating or refining certain terms with the applicant. The terms contained in any final award documents may differ from the terms of the PMT being announced today.

CHIPS for America

Over two years after the passage of the CHIPS and Science Act, the Biden-Harris Administration is moving full speed ahead in order to help protect our economic and national security and restore American leadership in an industry that we started decades ago. Since the beginning of the Biden-Harris Administration, semiconductor and electronics companies have announced over $400 billion in private investments, catalyzed in large part by public investment. By allocating over $32 billion in proposed funding across 16 states to build factories domestically and proposing to invest billions more in research and innovation, CHIPS for America is creating an estimated 115,000+ jobs, including tens of thousands of good-paying jobs that don’t require a college degree. Our efforts are a meaningful step towards ensuring that the United States produces more of the world’s most advanced technologies – from AI to defense systems and everyday items like cars and medical devices. With a focus on expanding capacity, enhancing capabilities, maintaining competitiveness, and driving commercialization, CHIPS for America is working towards driving our future, securing our supply chains, and cementing America’s place at the forefront of technology.

CHIPS for America is part of President Biden’s economic plan to invest in America, stimulate private sector investment, create good-paying jobs, make more in the United States, and revitalize communities left behind. CHIPS for America includes the CHIPS Program Office, responsible for manufacturing incentives, and the CHIPS Research and Development Office, responsible for R&D programs, that both sit within the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) at the Department of Commerce. Visit https://www.chips.gov to learn more.

Today, the United States announced its list of critical sectors and key goods for potential cooperation under the IPEF Supply Chain Agreement to strengthen supply chain resiliency. This is a key milestone in implementing the IPEF Supply Chain Agreement to establish a framework for deeper collaboration to prevent, mitigate, and prepare for supply chain disruptions.

The IPEF Supply Chain Council, one of the three bodies established under the IPEF Supply Chain Agreement, lays the foundation for collaboration on supply chain opportunities and challenges across the Indo-Pacific. Through the work of the Council, Parties may collaborate to enhance the resilience, sustainability, and diversification of IPEF supply chains and explore opportunities to identify best practices and advance policies, measures, or actions positively impacting trade among the Parties in critical sectors or key goods.

Under the IPEF Supply Chain Agreement, each Party committed to developing a list of “critical sectors” and “key goods” for cooperation under the Agreement, to be shared through the Council. These lists are intended to be iterative and change as needed over time.

The International Trade Administration’s Industry & Analysis unit conducted in-house analyses of supply chains for sectors and goods for potential near-term U.S. opportunities in the Indo-Pacific region, supplemented by public input obtained via a Federal Register Notice (FRN) in June 2024 and interagency consultations.

Ultimately, sectors and goods notified by multiple Parties may be selected as the subject of Action Plans to identify shared vulnerabilities and opportunities to build resilience per Article 10 of the IPEF Supply Chain Agreement. The U.S. list below is specifically for use in the context of the IPEF Supply Chain Agreement and is not a definitive list of U.S. priorities for the purposes of any other U.S. government supply chain efforts, nor a definitive list of what the IPEF Supply Chain Council will prioritize for discussion and action. The United States does not anticipate that all of the sectors and goods on this list will be selected for Action Plans, which will be decided by the Council. This list can be updated in the future as needed. The United States continues to seek input on sectors and goods for consideration under the IPEF Supply Chain Agreement, and the U.S. list of critical sectors and key goods can be updated in the future accordingly.

U.S. List of Critical Sectors and Key Goods for Potential Cooperation under the IPEF Supply Chain Agreement

Agriculture 

Chemicals 

Consumer Goods 

Critical Minerals and Mining 

Energy/Environmental Industries, including: 

• Advanced batteries, including components and materials 
• Carbon management/capture technologies  
• Electric grid equipment and technologies 
• Forgings and die castings 
• Hydropower, including components and materials 
• Hydrogen, including components and materials, as well as molecular derivatives  
• Permanent magnets 
• Nuclear energy, including components and materials  
• Solar energy systems, including panels, components, and materials  
• Water and wastewater treatment equipment and chemicals 
• Wind turbines, including components and materials 

Health Industries, including:  

• Medical devices 
• Personal protective equipment 
• Pharmaceuticals (particularly Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs), generic drugs, and biological products) 
• Vitamins and amino acids 

Information and Communication Technology Products, including: 

• Audiovisual technology (particularly displays) 
• Semiconductors (focused on assembly, testing, and packaging (ATP)) 
• Telecommunication network equipment (particularly switches and routers) 
• Electronics manufacturing services 

Transportation and Logistics, including:  

• Aerospace and aerospace components, including aircraft equipment  
• Automotive parts (particularly electronic components, sensors, engines, transmissions, and electric motors used in vehicles) 
• Cargo handling equipment (particularly cranes) and the movement of shipping containers 
• Heavy/medium duty trucks, including parts and materials 
• Mass transit equipment, including transit buses, motor coaches, and rail passenger cars 
• Rail equipment 
• Shipbuilding and repair (particularly shipbuilding materials, marine engines, propulsion systems, ship components, and repair equipment) 
• Transportation, logistics, and distribution services (particularly cold chain services and IT interoperability standards) 

U.S. Department of Commerce Outlines $1.6 Billion in Proposed Funding to Support Multiple Projects in Texas and Utah to Increase Production of Chips Vital for U.S. Economic and National Security

Today, the Biden-Harris Administration announced that the U.S. Department of Commerce and Texas Instruments (TI) have signed a non-binding preliminary memorandum of terms (PMT) to provide up to $1.6 billion in proposed direct funding under the CHIPS and Science Act to strengthen domestic supply chain resilience, advance our national security, and bolster U.S. competitiveness in current-generation and mature-node semiconductor production. President Biden and Vice President Harris championed the CHIPS and Science Act, a key component of the Investing in America agenda, to usher in a new era of semiconductor manufacturing in the United States, bringing with it a revitalized domestic supply chain, good-paying jobs, and investments in the industries of the future. The proposed funding would support TI’s investment of more than $18 billion through the end of decade to construct three new state-of-the-art facilities, including two in Texas and one in Utah, and is estimated to create over 2,000 manufacturing jobs and thousands of construction jobs over time.

Headquartered in Dallas, TI is a global leading manufacturer of analog and embedded processing semiconductors. The company has played an important role in the U.S. economy for almost a century, with the invention of the integrated circuit, creating the technological foundation for the modern electronics and semiconductor industries. Today, TI specializes in the production of current-generation and mature-node chips, also referred to as “foundational” chips, which are the building blocks for nearly all electronic systems, including power management integrated circuits, microcontrollers, amplifiers, sensors, and more. TI’s planned projects would meaningfully support the increasing needs for economic and national security applications – areas that TI has supported for decades.

“During the pandemic, shortages of current-generation and mature-node chips fueled inflation and made our country less safe. With this proposed investment from the Biden-Harris Administration in TI, a global leader of production for current-generation and mature-node chips, we would help secure the supply chain for these foundational semiconductors that are used in every sector of the U.S. economy, and create thousands of jobs in Texas and Utah,” said U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo. “The CHIPS for America program will supercharge American technology and innovation and make our country more secure – and TI is expected to be an important part of the success of the Biden-Harris Administration’s work to revitalize semiconductor manufacturing and development in the U.S.”

“Americans across the country felt the impact of semiconductor shortages during the pandemic—from car and appliance scarcities, to manufacturing lines halted and jobs lost. With the CHIPS and Science Act, President Biden and Vice President Harris took action to strengthen our supply chains, create good-paying jobs, and advance U.S. competitiveness,” said Assistant to the President for Science and Technology and Director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy Arati Prabhakar. “Texas Instruments is a global leader in foundational chip manufacturing, and thanks to the leadership of President Biden and Vice President Harris, TI is investing in our future here at home.”

Shortages of current-generation and mature-node chips were one of the driving factors of supply chain disruptions during the COVID-19 pandemic, causing acute impacts on the U.S. automotive, industrial, and defense industries, and on the availability of goods for Americans. TI’s more than $18 billion planned investment through the end of the decade across these three facilities would significantly increase its domestic production capacity of foundational chips, bolstering resilience against major economic disruptions. As one of the only companies building high-volume 300-mm wafer capacity for foundational technologies in the United States, this proposed CHIPS investment would help support CHIPS for America’s Vision for Success by substantially increasing domestic manufacturing capabilities for mature-node chips.

“The historic CHIPS Act is enabling more semiconductor manufacturing capacity in the U.S., making the semiconductor ecosystem stronger and more resilient,” said Haviv Ilan, president and CEO of Texas Instruments. “Our investments further strengthen our competitive advantage in manufacturing and technology as we expand our 300mm manufacturing operations in the U.S. With plans to grow our internal manufacturing to more than 95% by 2030, we’re building geopolitically dependable, 300mm capacity at scale to provide the analog and embedded processing chips our customers will need for years to come.”

The proposed CHIPS funding would be split across three projects in two locations:

• Sherman, Texas: Construction of two new, large-scale 300-mm fabrication facilities that are expected to produce 65nm – 130nm essential chips, with anticipated production capacity of more than one hundred million chips every day. The Sherman site is one of the only greenfield production sites for chips on 300-mm wafers in the U.S.
•  Lehi, Utah: Construction of a new, large-scale 300-mm fabrication facility to produce 28nm – 65nm analog and embedded processing chips, which is anticipated to produce tens of millions of chips every day. This project represents the largest economic investment in Utah’s history.

TI will continue to further its strategic approach of building closer direct customer relationships and maintaining inventory for high levels of customer service, both of which would help advance U.S. economic security.

“One of the four main pillars Secretary Raimondo laid out for successful implementation of the CHIPS and Science Act is the United States increasing its production capacity for current-generation and mature-node chips most vital to U.S. economic and national security,” said Under Secretary of Commerce for Standards and Technology and National Institute of Standards and Technology Director Laurie E. Locascio. “With our proposed investment in the world’s global leader of current-generation and mature-node chips, we would significantly advance our economic and national security and mitigate supply chain vulnerabilities, which were the driving factors of the CHIPS and Science Act.”

The proposed investment is estimated to create over 2,000 manufacturing jobs and thousands of construction jobs over time. Additionally, the PMT includes $10 million in proposed dedicated workforce funding to support the development of the company’s semiconductor and construction workforce. TI is committed to building a future-ready workforce, and invests in enhancing the skills of current employees, expanding internships and creating pipeline programs with a focus on building electronic and mechanical skills. TI has robust engagements with 40 community colleges, high schools, and military institutions across the U.S. to develop future semiconductor talent. TI provides their employees with a range of child care benefits that include Flexible Spending Accounts, paid parental leave, and services to match employee families with commercial child care centers according to their preferences. The company also plans to partner with additional providers to increase availability of child care services near their facilities.

The company has indicated that it plans to claim the Department of the Treasury’s Investment Tax Credit, which is expected to be up to 25% of qualified capital expenditures. In addition to the proposed direct funding of up to $1.6 billion, the CHIPS Program Office would make approximately $3 billion in proposed loans – which is part of the $75 billion in loan authority provided by the CHIPS and Science Act – available to TI under the PMT.

As explained in its first Notice of Funding Opportunity, the Department may offer applicants a PMT on a non-binding basis after satisfactory completion of the merit review of a full application. The PMT outlines key terms for a potential CHIPS incentives award, including the amount and form of the award. The award amounts are subject to due diligence and negotiation of award documents and are conditional on the achievement of certain milestones. After the PMT is signed, the Department begins a comprehensive due diligence process on the proposed projects and continues negotiating or refining certain terms with the applicant. The terms contained in any final award documents may differ from the terms of the PMT being announced today.

About CHIPS for America

Over two years after the passage of CHIPS and Science Act, the Biden-Harris Administration is moving full speed ahead in order to help protect our economic and national security and restore American leadership in an industry that we started decades ago. Since the beginning of the Administration, semiconductor and electronics companies have announced nearly $400 billion in private investments, catalyzed in large part by public investment. By allocating over $31 billion in proposed funding across 15 states to build factories domestically and proposing to invest billions more in research and innovation, CHIPS for America is creating an estimated 100,000+ jobs, including tens of thousands of good-paying jobs that don’t require a college degree. Our efforts are a meaningful step towards ensuring that the United States produces more of the world’s most advanced technologies – from AI to defense systems and everyday items like cars and medical devices. With a focus on expanding capacity, enhancing capabilities, maintaining competitiveness, and driving commercialization, CHIPS for America is working towards driving our future, securing our supply chains, and cementing America’s place at the forefront of technology.

CHIPS for America is part of President Biden’s economic plan to invest in America, stimulate private sector investment, create good-paying jobs, make more in the United States, and revitalize communities left behind. CHIPS for America includes the CHIPS Program Office, responsible for manufacturing incentives, and the CHIPS Research and Development Office, responsible for R&D programs, that both sit within the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) at the Department of Commerce. Visit https://www.chips.gov to learn more.

Today, the U.S. Department of Commerce announced it will hold, with the Council on Foreign Relations, a Supply Chain Summit in Washington, D.C. on September 10, 2024. 

The Supply Chain Summit will explore efforts taken by government and industry to shift from reacting to global supply chain disruptions to proactively strengthening supply chain resilience. The Summit will gather leaders from industry, government, academia, and civil society to collaborate and share best practices for preventing and addressing supply chain vulnerabilities.  

During the event, the Department of Commerce will highlight its unique role in assessing and addressing supply chain challenges, including launching a first of its kind Supply Chain Center in the International Trade Administration’s Industry and Analysis unit. The Supply Chain Center fuses deep industry expertise and data analytics to develop supply chain risk assessment tools, deliver key insights, and drive targeted action on select critical supply chains and emerging technologies.

“Securing American supply chains is vital to protecting our national security and enhancing our economic competitiveness,” said U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo. “This summit will help us both engage with industry and highlight strategies the Biden-Harris Administration is leading to develop data-driven tools and proactively make our supply chains more secure.”

Media who would like to register for the September 10 event should email publicaffairs@doc.gov and communications@cfr.org. 

Further information about the hybrid Supply Chain Summit and the Department of Commerce’s Supply Chain Center, will be available at trade.gov/supply-chain-center in the near future.

On Monday, U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo convened a roundtable discussion with investors to discuss non-market actions from the People’s Republic of China (PRC) that threaten to distort the market for mature node (or “legacy”) semiconductors. Secretary Raimondo emphasized her concern that over the past few years, the U.S. has seen signs of concerning practices from the PRC to overproduce legacy chips and prevent U.S. companies, and those in like-minded countries, from competing on a level playing field. The Secretary underscored that securing the semiconductor supply chain is an economic and national security priority and reiterated the actions that the Department of Commerce—and the whole federal government—are taking. Those actions include imposing targeted tariffs on semiconductors imported from the PRC, an industrial base survey of the U.S. semiconductor supply chain, joint efforts with international partners, and restrictions on the use of PRC semiconductors in U.S. government procurement. Investors discussed how companies are thinking about oversupply and overconcentration risk, and how additional U.S. government actions could most effectively support resilient semiconductor supply chains.

Biden-Harris Administration’s Bipartisan CHIPS and Science Act Attracts All Five Major Leading-Edge Logic and Memory Companies to Produce Chips on U.S. Soil

Today, the Biden-Harris Administration announced that the U.S. Department of Commerce and SK hynix have signed a non-binding preliminary memorandum of terms (PMT) to provide up to $450 million in proposed federal incentives under the CHIPS and Science Act to establish a high-bandwidth memory (HBM) advanced packaging fabrication and research and development (R&D) facility. President Biden signed the bipartisan CHIPS and Science Act to usher in a new era of semiconductor manufacturing in the United States, bringing with it a revitalized domestic supply chain, good-paying jobs, and investments in the industries of the future. The proposed CHIPS investment builds upon SK hynix’s investment of approximately $3.87 billion in West Lafayette, Indiana, to build a memory packaging plant for artificial intelligence (AI) products and an advanced packaging R&D facility, creating approximately 1,000 new jobs and filling a critical gap in the U.S. semiconductor supply chain.

“The Biden-Harris Administration’s CHIPS and Science Act is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to supercharge America’s global technology leadership and create quality jobs in the process. Today’s historic announcement with SK hynix would further solidify America’s AI hardware supply chain in a way no other country on earth can match, with every major player in advanced semiconductor manufacturing and packaging building or expanding on our shores,” said U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo. “Because of President Biden and Vice President Harris’ leadership, we are creating hundreds of new jobs in Indiana and ensuring the Hoosier state and Purdue University will play a crucial role in advancing America’s national security and supply chains.”

“President Biden and Vice President Harris are bringing the most advanced semiconductor manufacturing back to the United States,” said Arati Prabhakar, Assistant to the President for Science and Technology and Director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy. “Advanced packaging is more and more critical for AI and other leading-edge systems, but it requires extremely precise manufacturing processes. With this incentive from the CHIPS and Science Act, SK hynix will make a major contribution to the complex computing systems that our nation relies on. At the same time, we are making the R&D investments to win the future, too.”

The West Lafayette plant builds on SK Group’s previously announced multi-billion commitment to invest in American manufacturing, including EV batteries and biotechnology, which was announced during a meeting with President Biden in July 2022. Through the proposed CHIPS investment in SK hynix, the world’s leading producer of HBM, the Biden-Harris Administration would take a meaningful step in advancing the security of the U.S. AI supply chain. With this announcement, the United States will have preliminary agreements with all five of the world’s leading-edge logic, memory, and advanced packaging providers. No other economy in the world has more than two of these companies producing leading-edge chips on its shores. 

SK hynix’s West Lafayette facility, located at the Purdue University Research Park, will be home to an advanced semiconductor packaging line that will mass-produce next generation HBM. These high-performance memory chips are crucial components of graphics processing units (GPUs) that train AI systems due to their increased processing power. This next generation chip would be mass-produced at the West Lafayette facility and will boast a more advanced performance than the company’s latest HBM, which processes up to 1.18 terabytes of data – the equivalent of 230 full HD movies – per second. Mass production at the facility is expected to begin in the second half of 2028.

“The Biden-Harris Administration is dedicated to inventing and commercializing semiconductor technology in the United States and to promoting domestic semiconductor manufacturing. With President Biden and Vice President Harris’ proposed investment in SK hynix, we could advance our commitment to accomplishing both,” said Under Secretary of Commerce for Standards and Technology and National Institute of Standards and Technology Director Laurie E. Locascio. “With proposed investments in companies like SK hynix, the United States has the opportunity to be the only country in the world where every company capable of producing leading-edge chips will have both a high-volume manufacturing presence and a significant research and development presence.”

As a result of this proposed investment, the Biden-Harris Administration would establish a research hub in Indiana because of SK hynix’s partnership with Purdue University, which hosts the largest facility of its kind at a U.S. university, while bringing next generation HBM and advanced packaging R&D to the United States. The next generation HBM that will be researched and developed, mass-produced, and packaged in this ecosystem with Purdue University will play an important role in the U.S. semiconductor ecosystem and advancing U.S. technological leadership.

“We deeply appreciate the U.S. Department of Commerce’s support and are excited to collaborate in seeing this transformational project fully realized,” said SK hynix CEO Kwak Noh-Jung. “We are moving forward with the construction of the Indiana production base, working with the State of Indiana, Purdue University and our U.S. business partners to ultimately supply leading-edge AI memory products from West Lafayette. We look forward to establishing a new hub for AI technology, creating skilled jobs for Indiana and helping build a more robust, resilient supply chain for the global semiconductor industry.”

SK hynix will collaborate with Purdue University on plans for future R&D projects, which include working on advanced packaging and heterogeneous integration with Purdue’s Birck Nanotechnology Center and other research institutes and industry partners. SK hynix plans to collaborate on projects for memory-centric solutions and architecture for generative AI – specifically memory design and in/near memory computing. As part of its workforce development efforts, SK hynix plans to work with Purdue University and Ivy Tech Community College to develop training programs and interdisciplinary degree curricula that will cultivate a high-tech workforce and build a reliable pipeline of new talent. Additionally, SK hynix plans to support the work of the Purdue Research Foundation and other local non-profits and charities by building partnerships that provide community development, growth opportunities, and leadership training.

The company has indicated that it plans to claim the Department of the Treasury’s Investment Tax Credit, which is expected to be up to 25% of qualified capital expenditures. In addition to the proposed direct funding of up to $450 million, the CHIPS Program Office would make up to $500 million of proposed loans – which is part of the $75 billion in loan authority provided by the CHIPS and Science Act – available to SK hynix under the non-binding PMT.

As explained in its first Notice of Funding Opportunity, the Department may offer applicants a PMT on a non-binding basis after satisfactory completion of the merit review of a full application. The PMT outlines key terms for a potential CHIPS incentives award, including the amount and form of the award. The award amounts are subject to due diligence and negotiation of award documents and are conditional on the achievement of certain milestones. After the PMT is signed, the Department begins a comprehensive due diligence process on the proposed projects and continues negotiating or refining certain terms with the applicant. The terms contained in any final award documents may differ from the terms of the PMT being announced today.

About CHIPS for America

Nearly two years after the passage of CHIPS and Science Act, the Biden-Harris Administration is moving full speed ahead in order to help protect our economic and national security and restore American leadership in an industry that we started decades ago. By allocating over $30 billion in proposed funding to build factories domestically and proposing to invest billions more in research and innovation, we are unlocking over $300 billion in public and private investment and creating more than 100,000 jobs, including tens of thousands of good-paying jobs that don't require a college degree. Our efforts are a meaningful step towards ensuring that the United States produces more of the world’s most advanced technologies – from AI to defense systems and everyday items like cars and medical devices. With a focus on expanding capacity, enhancing capabilities, maintaining competitiveness, and driving commercialization, CHIPS for America is working towards driving our future, securing our supply chains, and cementing America’s place at the forefront of technology.

CHIPS for America is part of President Biden’s economic plan to invest in America, stimulate private sector investment, create good-paying jobs, make more in the United States, and revitalize communities left behind. CHIPS for America includes the CHIPS Program Office, responsible for manufacturing incentives, and the CHIPS Research and Development Office, responsible for R&D programs, that both sit within the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) at the Department of Commerce. Visit https://www.chips.gov to learn more. 

Today, the U.S. Department of Commerce announced further progress in operationalizing the landmark Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF) Agreement Relating to Supply Chain Resilience (Supply Chain Agreement) with the conclusion of the inaugural virtual meetings of the three supply chain bodies established under the Agreement – the Supply Chain Council, the Crisis Response Network, and the Labor Rights Advisory Board.

These meetings mark a monumental step in realizing the partners’ collective goals under the IPEF Supply Chain Agreement, which aims to facilitate closer cooperation among the 14 IPEF partners – Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Fiji, India, Indonesia, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, the United States, and Vietnam – to strengthen the resilience and competitiveness of critical supply chains and better prepare for and respond to supply chain disruptions that pose a risk to economic prosperity while strengthening labor rights and raising up workers across the region. These latest actions build on the continued progress on IPEF made last month in Singapore, where U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo and participating IPEF partners signed the IPEF Clean Economy Agreement, IPEF Fair Economy Agreement, and overarching Agreement on IPEF.

“The economic impact of COVID-19 exposed vulnerabilities in our supply chains that caused a ripple effect across the country and around the world. To safeguard our supply chains from future global disruptions – whether it be a pandemic or natural disaster – we knew we needed to act swiftly and decisively,” said Secretary Gina Raimondo. “Under President Biden and Vice President Harris’ leadership, we established IPEF, and barely two-years later, are quickly working together with our partners to ensure we’re prepared to mitigate the impact of crises, while building a stronger, more prosperous economy for American workers, consumers, and businesses.”

Pursuant to the Supply Chain Agreement, the IPEF partners established three supply chain bodies – a Supply Chain Council to pursue targeted, action-oriented work to strengthen the supply chains for those sectors and goods most critical to national security, public health, and economic well-being; a Crisis Response Network to provide a forum for collective emergency response to exigent or imminent disruptions; and a Labor Rights Advisory Board that brings together workers, employers, and governments at the same table to strengthen labor rights and workforce development across regional supply chains.

The Supply Chain Council and Crisis Response Network are comprised of senior governments officials, while the Labor Rights Advisory Board includes senior government officials and representatives from the worker and employer organizations credentialed at the most recent International Labor Conference, from each of the 14 IPEF partners.

For the United States, Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Industry and Analysis Grant Harris will serve on the Supply Chain Council and the Crisis Response Network.  Deputy Undersecretary of Labor for International Affairs Thea Lee will serve on the Labor Rights Advisory Board, along with Eric Gottwald of the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations and Ewa Staworzynska of the United States Council for International Business.

During the meetings, each of the three supply chain bodies elected a Chair and Vice Chair, which will serve for a term of two years. For the Supply Chain Council, the Council members elected the United States as Chair and India as Vice Chair. For the Crisis Response Network, the Network members elected the Republic of Korea as Chair and Japan as Vice Chair. For the Labor Rights Advisory Board, the United States was elected to serve as Chair and Fiji as the Vice Chair.

During its meeting, the Supply Chain Council also adopted a Terms of Reference to guide its operations going forward and discussed priorities for initial work, with the goal of continuing those discussions at its first in-person meeting to be held in Washington, D.C. in September on the margins of a Commerce-led Supply Chain Summit.

The Crisis Response Network discussed near- and longer-term priorities, including conducting a tabletop exercise, along with its first in-person meeting, which will be held on the margins of the Commerce-led Supply Chain Summit.

“The U.S. Department of Commerce has made supply chain resilience a top priority, including through the establishment of our Supply Chain Center. Through collaboration under the IPEF Supply Chain Agreement, we can support economic growth and lower costs for American families by strengthening supply chain resilience and reducing risks and structural vulnerabilities,” said Assistant Secretary Harris.

The Labor Rights Advisory Board discussed priorities on strengthening labor rights across IPEF supply chains, including plans to convene in-person for further discussions in Bangkok, Thailand from August 26-28. The convening not only will advance the work of the Labor Rights Advisory Board, but also focus on the labor provisions in the IPEF Clean Economy Agreement and Fair Economy Agreement.

“The Labor Rights Advisory Board will be a valuable tool to protect labor rights, prevent disruptions to our supply chains, and create an investment environment that leads to long term, sustainable growth in the Indo-Pacific region,” said U.S. Department of Labor Deputy Undersecretary for International Affairs and LRAB Chair Thea Lee. “The United States welcomes the tripartite structure of the LRAB and looks forward to working closely with the members of the board to achieve this high road model through the Supply Chain Agreement.”

About IPEF

In May 2022, President Biden launched IPEF, bringing together 14 regional partners – Australia, Brunei, Fiji, India, Indonesia, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, the United States, and Vietnam – in a new model of economic cooperation. IPEF negotiations began in late 2022. In May 2023, the IPEF partners announced the substantial conclusion of the negotiations for a first-of-its-kind IPEF Supply Chain Agreement. In November 2023, the IPEF partners announced the substantial conclusion of the negotiations on the proposed IPEF Clean Economy and Fair Economy Agreements, as well as on a proposed overarching Agreement on IPEF to help ensure the durability of the framework, and held a signing ceremony for the IPEF Supply Chain Agreement, which entered into force on February 24, 2024.

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Announcements made at the inaugural event included $20 million in philanthropic support for the Good Jobs Economy initiative, including for regions designated as Regional Tech Hubs under the Biden-Harris Administration’s landmark investment program.

On July 23, the Biden-Harris Administration announced a series of actions and commitments from the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration (EDA), the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the private sector to enable the long-term, sustainable success of all designated Regional Technology and Innovation Hubs (Tech Hubs), NSF Regional Innovation Engines (NSF Engines) and their broader ecosystems.

These announcements were made at the inaugural Innovative Capital Summit, hosted by the U.S. Department of Commerce and the Special Competitive Studies Project in partnership with EDA, NSF, and the Milken Institute. The event was held in Washington, D.C., and brought together stakeholders across industry, philanthropy, government and academia to help foster collaboration in regional technological development. The Summit was developed to help catalyze investment in American innovation and competitiveness by bringing together third-party capital providers and members of regional technology ecosystems from across the U.S. The participating ecosystems included Tech Hubs and NSF Engines. Each of these groups are focused on developing and supporting groundbreaking advancements in quantum computing, medicine, biotechnology, autonomy, semiconductors, energy, agriculture, aerospace, critical minerals, advanced materials or climate resilience.

“If we want a truly national innovation ecosystem, we need to tap into the full potential of our country and expand beyond the typical metropolitan locations that have become overconcentrated. That was the driving idea behind our Tech Hubs program - to meet people where they are,” said U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo. “We are investing in regional consortiums that will accelerate American competitiveness in the 21st century and ensure our leadership in the industries of the future, including biotech, quantum, autonomous systems, clean energy, and advanced manufacturing. But we can’t do it alone, which is why convenings like this are so critical to institutionalize the work we’re doing and continue investments in the Tech Hubs Program. This week’s announcements underscore what’s possible when we bring together our greatest assets and create bridges for opportunity.”

“The NSF Engines and EDA's Tech Hubs constitute significant and transformational place-based science and technology investments by the federal government. These investments have planted the seeds of innovation, opening doors to opportunities across the nation and ensuring the U.S. leads in technologies that will define the future,” said NSF Director Sethuraman Panchanathan. "NSF was thrilled to collaborate with the U.S. Department of Commerce and the Economic Development Administration to connect capital providers to teams leading these innovation ecosystems. That is the catalyst we need to spark the private sector’s investment that will scale these innovation ecosystems and transform industries and communities across America.”

About the Inaugural Innovative Capital Summit:

The first Innovative Capital Summit gathered some of the nation’s largest capital providers, including philanthropies, venture and growth capital, private equity and infrastructure funds, along with other organizations, with designated Tech Hubs and NSF Engines to elevate investment opportunities and facilitate complementary Federal and private sector investments as part of a series of engagements between communities and capital providers. The day-long Summit provided attendees the opportunity to hear from nearly 40 communities designated as Tech Hubs or NSF Engines about their plans for becoming globally competitive in critical and emerging technology commercialization in the next ten years. The inaugural Innovative Capital Summit will be followed by additional convening activities over the rest of the year.

The Summit resulted in a series of major announcements to spur continued investments in regions and technologies of the future.

• Philanthropic and Private Sector Commitments to Tech Hubs: Participating U.S. companies, government agencies, and organizations announced several major commitments at the Summit, which include the following:
  • Non-profit organization America Achieves announced its new Good Jobs Economy initiative working with local regions, including Tech Hubs, to advance and integrate strategies for economic growth and economic mobility by providing them with funding, a community of peers, and high-quality, tailored technical assistance. The Good Jobs Economy initiative is being supported by at least $20 million in philanthropic funding. Funding for planning and preparation has been provided by Blue Meridian Partners, the George Kaiser Family Foundation, the Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth, Strada Education Foundation, and others. Funders supporting implementation of this work going forward include MacKenzie Scott, among others.
  • Google announced it will provide scholarships for career-ready upskilling in fields like cybersecurity, IT support, data analytics, and artificial intelligence. Google Career Certificates have helped over 250,000 people upskill in the U.S. To support small businesses in Tech Hub communities, Google will also provide access to Grow with Google Digital Coaches, which offers training and hands-on coaching on topics like cybersecurity, connecting with customers, and improving business productivity. Grow with Google Digital Coaches have helped train more than 230,000 small businesses across the U.S. to date.
  • The Milken Institute announced the development of a Tech Hub Partners program to strengthen the network of 31 Tech Hubs across the U.S. to link business leaders and investors to new tech innovation opportunities and develop new strategies for U.S. technology and economic competitiveness. The effort will focus on strengthening and accelerating ties between the Tech Hubs, business leaders looking to invest in bottom-up innovation, and stakeholders engaged in the Institute’s 10,000 Communities Initiative, which helps underserved communities and diverse entrepreneurs to develop critical regional infrastructure and support equitable supply chains.

Additional Background:

Benefits of Tech Hubs Designation: A Tech Hubs Designation is an endorsement of a region’s plans to supercharge their respective technological industry to create jobs and strengthen U.S. economic and national security. The Tech Hubs Program is partnering with departments and agencies from across the federal government to offer support and benefits to all 31 Tech Hubs Designees, including support for Tech Hubs Designees and ecosystems in driving additional capital to finance the growth of innovation centers. For the purpose of expanding access to capital and markets, these include:

• Site Visits: To amplify the Tech Hubs Implementation Awards announcement, demonstrate EDA’s commitment to all designated Tech Hubs, and encourage continued industry and diversified private sector investments into Tech Hubs, White House, Commerce, and EDA Principals will be visiting all Tech Hubs throughout Summer 2024. EDA and NSF are collaborating to amplify Federal place-based investments and are inviting capital providers, through the Innovative Capital Summit, to join these visits, do their own due diligence, and experience the tangible opportunities across Hubs and Engines.
• Centralized Follow-on Funding Information: EDA will offer Tech Hubs a robust Capital Database that aggregates information about public and private sector funding opportunities relevant to Tech Hubs’ capital-raising goals and initiatives.

Next Round of NSF Competition: NSF announced the second NSF Engines competition. Nearly 300 teams have signaled an intent to apply for the opportunity, spanning every U.S. state and territory and with representation from several Tech Hub designees. These prospective NSF Engines demonstrate a tremendous amount of latent innovation potential and capacity across the United States. Eligible applicants have submitted letters of intent to submit preliminary proposals on August 6, 2024. To learn more and reach out to the teams interested in participating in this round of the competition, visit NSF’s interactive dashboard. 

Additional Commitments to NSF Engines and Tech Hubs Designees: Phase 1 of the Tech Hubs program identified 31 Tech Hubs in geographically diverse, high-potential regions across the country with demonstrated expertise in emergent technology sectors. Collectively, these Tech Hubs secured well over a thousand commitments, attracting more than $4 billion in investment commitments and catalyzing meaningful public and institutional policy changes that support their strategies. Since attracting those commitments in their Phase 2 applications, NSF Engines and Tech Hubs have secured additional commitments, which include the following:

• Baltimore Tech Hub: Belgian-based company Cenergy Holdings announced plans in July to establish a cable manufacturing facility in Maryland. Its U.S. subsidiary, Hellenic Cables Americas, has officially acquired a 38-acre property in Wagner’s Point along the Patapsco River in Baltimore City, where it will support 500+ direct and indirect jobs.
• Birmingham Biotechnology Hub: The Alabama Community College System (ACCS) has completed content development for the state’s first Biotechnology Technician accredited training program and expects its deployment in November 2024. Content development resulted from collaboration between private industry, the state’s biotechnology professional association, colleges, and the Alabama STEM Council. Once live, ACCS will fund scholarships for every student who wants to complete this course, totaling an approximate $1.2M in-kind donation and an estimated 400 learners impacted over five years.
• The Bloch Tech Hub: Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker announced Quantum Proving Ground, a pivotal partnership between Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) and the State of Illinois to test and evaluate utility-scale quantum computing prototypes for economic and commercial applications. This historic investment from DARPA for up to $140M, matched by the state, will support researchers and companies to drive quantum innovations to scale, while also boosting Illinois' local economy and creating countless high-wage jobs.
• Central Florida Semiconductor Innovation Engine: This Engine announced a 5-year extension of Tokyo Electric’s partnership with Bridg/NeoCity and Skywater to host their Demonstration Center on site. The Central Florida Semiconductor Innovation Engine, which was also a winner of Build Back Better Regional Challenge funding announced a partnership with incubator/accelerator, Plug and Play, to host a world-wide semiconductor vertical. The initial 10 start-ups have been identified and are moving on-site with an additional to be named soon.
• ClimateReady Tech Hub: Titan America secured $61M from the Department of Energy for first-of-its-kind clean cement deployment and research, supporting TITAN Cement Group's ambitious goal to deliver net-zero concrete by 2050. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) will fund $10M of local Reefense deployments in Miami-Dade. Seaworthy Collective and Ocean Exchange have been invited to apply for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Ocean-Based Climate Resilience Accelerator Phase 2 funding.
• Colorado-Wyoming Climate Resilience Engine: This spring, Innosphere Ventures, the lead organization for the Colorado-Wyoming Climate Resilience Engine, was awarded $1.4M from Opportunity Now Colorado Grant Program to address regional workforce gaps in systems engineering. They also announced the first round of its Use-Inspired and Translation Grant opportunities, offering university innovators up to $300,000.
• CM2AE Tech Hub: U.S. Strategic Metals has reached nearly $500M in funding and commitments for expansion of its mining, recycling, and processing operations, helping drive United States supply chain independence. Doe Run was awarded a $7M Department of Defense critical minerals project grant under the Defense Production Act.
• Elevate Quantum Tech Hub: Elevate Quantum Tech Hub is excited to announce the launch of the Quantum Commons at Arvada. This 70-plus acre dedicated quantum site will house globally unique rapid prototyping and low volume manufacturing capabilities to enable every single modality and technology for quantum. Activated with $100M+ in capital, the park will be the lynchpin of Elevate Quantum’s strategy to create 10,000+ jobs, unlock $2B in private capital, and generate $100M+ in revenue for this public-private partnership to reinvest in the region.
• IFAB Tech Hub: Primient, a leader in sustainable food and industrial ingredient production, has committed to invest $400M in infrastructure and operations over the next five years. Serra Ventures closed its second Agriculture and Food Tech Fund for $15M with Grondex International, B.V. The State of Illinois launched the Innovation Vouchers Program to incentivize Research & Development collaboration. Finally, the LabWorks life sciences incubator at the University of Illinois Research Park celebrated its grand opening.
• KC BioHub: KC BioHub secured an additional $1M appropriation in the State of Missouri budget.  Mayor Quinton Lucas and the Kansas City Missouri City Council granted the Tech Hub land with an estimated value of $3M in the Health Science Innovation District to house a shared wet lab and scale-up facility. A workforce working group drove the approval of biomanufacturing apprenticeship programs in both Kansas and Missouri as a result of their advocacy during the Tech Hubs application process.
• Ocean Tech Hub: Anduril Industries recently announced a new manufacturing facility (150,000 sq ft) for large scale production of Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVs) in Quonset Point, Rhode Island. Quonset Business Park cut the ribbon on railroad improvements and expansion on July 14, announcing over $4M to improve railroad infrastructure at this major port in Rhode Island. The Canadian Consulate General of Boston has announced Boston Blue Tech – a Canadian Technology Accelerator (CTA) in Ocean Technology in partnership with Ocean Tech Hub consortium partner Blue Venture Forum.
• PRBio Tech Hub: Academic and industry partners of the PRBio Tech Hub organized and hosted the International Forum on Process Analytical Chemistry Summit in June, featuring discussions with 100 technical leaders from across Puerto Rico’s biopharma companies.
• PROPEL Tech Hub: Iovance Therapeutics will continue its Philadelphia expansion focused on tech-ready employees, achieving Food and Drug Administration approval of the first cell therapy for metastatic melanoma in 1H’24. Recently-launched Keystone LifeSci Collaborative is creating sustainable talent pipelines by organizing public, community, and industry partners.
• Texoma Semiconductor Tech Hub: The State of Texas has committed $62.5M in matching funds and the Choctaw Nation has committed a $2M investment to support the Tech Hub. The U.S. Department of Commerce and GlobalWafers have signed a non-binding preliminary memorandum of terms (PMT) to provide up to $400M in proposed direct funding to help onshore critical semiconductor wafer production. Coherent & Sherman Economic Development Corporation (CSEDC) announced $101M of planned investment, the Geroge W. Bush Institute committed $1.5M, and the Spears Institute for Entrepreneurial Leadership is in the final stages of confirming a commitment.

Follow-On Activities to Connect Capital and Innovation Ecosystems: U.S. government entities announced several upcoming opportunities designed to build on the Summit’s progress and relationships:

• The NSF’s Directorate for Technology, Innovation and Partnerships (TIP) and EDA announced the ROADMAP Summit planned for December 2024. This event will be a new, major U.S. Government event hosted by NSF, EDA and their partners to convene and elevate the teams leading the Federal Government’s historic place-based innovation investments, including the NSF Regional Innovation Engines and EDA Regional Technology Hubs.

The Federation of American Scientists (FAS) will host a convening for national and regional philanthropic organizations in the coming months to explore opportunities to co-invest in NSF Engine communities and a broader set of NSF priorities. Funded by NSF and modeled after the successful NSF Industry Partnership Summit in Spring 2023 and the Innovative Capital Summit, it will bring together philanthropic and NSF leaders to identify opportunities for mutually impactful partnerships. The convening will include roundtable discussions spanning key topics for ongoing collaboration, including shared priorities, sector-specific opportunities, and emerging technology needs including workforce needs. To express your interest in being invited to this event, please fill out this form.

**For the first time, Commerce makes public new NIST draft guidance from the U.S. AI Safety Institute to help AI developers evaluate and mitigate risks stemming from generative AI and dual-use foundation models.**

Read the White House Fact sheet on Administration-wide actions on AI.

The U.S. Department of Commerce announced today, on the 270-day mark since President Biden’s Executive Order (EO) on the Safe, Secure and Trustworthy Development of AI, the release of new guidance and software to help improve the safety, security and trustworthiness of artificial intelligence (AI) systems.

The Department’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) released three final guidance documents that were first released in April for public comment, as well as a draft guidance document from the U.S. AI Safety Institute that is intended to help mitigate risks. NIST is also releasing a software package designed to measure how adversarial attacks can degrade the performance of an AI system. In addition, Commerce’s U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) issued a guidance update on patent subject matter eligibility to address innovation in critical and emerging technologies, including AI, and the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) delivered a report to the White House that examines the risks and benefits of large AI models with widely available weights.

“Under President Biden and Vice President Harris’ leadership, we at the Commerce Department have been working tirelessly to implement the historic Executive Order on AI and have made significant progress in the nine months since we were tasked with these critical responsibilities,” said U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo. “AI is the defining technology of our generation, so we are running fast to keep pace and help ensure the safe development and deployment of AI. Today’s announcements demonstrate our commitment to giving AI developers, deployers, and users the tools they need to safely harness the potential of AI, while minimizing its associated risks. We’ve made great progress, but have a lot of work ahead. We will keep up the momentum to safeguard America’s role as the global leader in AI.”

NIST’s document releases cover varied aspects of AI technology. Two were made public today for the first time. One is the initial public draft of a guidance document from the U.S. AI Safety Institute, and is intended to help AI developers evaluate and mitigate the risks stemming from generative AI and dual-use foundation models — AI systems that can be used for either beneficial or harmful purposes. The other is a testing platform designed to help AI system users and developers measure how certain types of attacks can degrade the performance of an AI system. Of the remaining three document releases, two are guidance documents designed to help manage the risks of generative AI — the technology that enables many chatbots as well as text-based image and video creation tools — and serve as companion resources to NIST’s AI Risk Management Framework (AI RMF) and Secure Software Development Framework (SSDF). The third proposes a plan for U.S. stakeholders to work with others around the globe on AI standards.

“For all its potentially transformational benefits, generative AI also brings risks that are significantly different from those we see with traditional software,” said Under Secretary of Commerce for Standards and Technology and NIST Director Laurie E. Locascio. “These guidance documents and testing platform will inform software creators about these unique risks and help them develop ways to mitigate those risks while supporting innovation.”

USPTO’s guidance update will assist USPTO personnel and stakeholders in determining subject matter eligibility under patent law (35 U.S.C. § 101) of AI inventions. This latest update builds on previous guidance by providing further clarity and consistency to how the USPTO and applicants should evaluate subject matter eligibility of claims in patent applications and patents involving inventions related to AI technology. The guidance update also announces three new examples of how to apply this guidance throughout a wide range of technologies.

“The USPTO remains committed to fostering and protecting innovation in critical and emerging technologies, including AI,” said Kathi Vidal, Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the USPTO. “We look forward to hearing public feedback on this guidance update, which will provide further clarity on evaluating subject matter eligibility of AI inventions while incentivizing innovations needed to solve world and community problems.”

NTIA’s soon-to-be-published report will review the risks and benefits of dual-use foundation models whose model weights are widely available (i.e. “open-weight models”), as well as develop policy recommendations maximizing those benefits while mitigating the risks. Open-weight models allow developers to build upon and adapt previous work, broadening AI tools’ availability to small companies, researchers, nonprofits, and individuals.

Additional information on today’s announcements from NIST can be found below.

Protecting Against Misuse Risk from Dual-Use Foundation Models

AI foundation models are powerful tools that are useful across a broad range of tasks and are sometimes called “dual-use” because of their potential for both benefit and harm. NIST’s U.S. AI Safety Institute has released the initial public draft of its guidelines on Managing Misuse Risk for Dual-Use Foundation Models, which outlines voluntary best practices for how foundation model developers can protect their systems from being misused to cause deliberate harm to individuals, public safety and national security.

The draft guidance offers seven key approaches for mitigating the risks that models will be misused, along with recommendations for how to implement them and how to be transparent about their implementation. Together, these practices can help prevent models from enabling harm through activities like developing biological weapons, carrying out offensive cyber operations, and generating child sexual abuse material and non-consensual intimate imagery.

The AI Safety Institute is accepting comments from the public on the draft Managing the Misuse Risk for Dual-Use Foundation Models until Sept. 9, 2024, at 11:59 PM Eastern Time. Comments can be submitted electronically to NISTAI800-1@nist.gov with “NIST AI 800-1, Managing Misuse Risk for Dual-Use Foundation Models” in the subject line. 

Testing how AI Models Respond to Attacks

One of the vulnerabilities of an AI system is the model at its core. By exposing a model to large amounts of training data, it learns to make decisions. But if adversaries poison the training data with inaccuracies — for example, by introducing data that can cause the model to misidentify stop signs as speed limit signs — the model can make incorrect, potentially disastrous decisions. Testing the effects of adversarial attacks on machine learning models is one of the goals of Dioptra, a new software package aimed at helping AI developers and customers determine how well their AI software stands up to a variety of adversarial attacks.  

The open-source software, available for free download, could help the community including government agencies and small- to medium-sized businesses conduct evaluations to assess AI developers’ claims about their systems’ performance. This software responds to Executive Order section 4.1 (ii) (B), which requires NIST to help with model testing. Dioptra does this by allowing a user to determine what sorts of attacks would make the model perform less effectively and quantifying the performance reduction so that the user can learn how often and under what circumstances the system would fail.

Managing the Risks of Generative AI

The AI RMF Generative AI Profile (NIST AI 600-1) can help organizations identify unique risks posed by generative AI and proposes actions for generative AI risk management that best aligns with their goals and priorities. The guidance is intended to be a companion resource for users of NIST’s AI RMF. It centers on a list of 12 risks and just over 200 actions that developers can take to manage them.

The 12 risks include a lowered barrier to entry for cybersecurity attacks, the production of mis- and disinformation or hate speech and other harmful content, and generative AI systems confabulating or “hallucinating” output. After describing each risk, the document presents a matrix of actions that developers can take to mitigate them, mapped to the AI RMF.

Reducing Threats to the Data Used to Train AI Systems

The second finalized publication, Secure Software Development Practices for Generative AI and Dual-Use Foundation Models (NIST Special Publication (SP) 800-218A) is designed to be used alongside the Secure Software Development Framework (SP 800-218). While the SSDF is broadly concerned with software coding practices, the companion resource expands the SSDF in part to address a major concern with generative AI systems: They can be compromised with malicious training data that adversely affect the AI system’s performance.

In addition to covering aspects of the training and use of AI systems, this guidance document identifies potential risk factors and strategies to address them. Among other recommendations, it suggests analyzing training data for signs of poisoning, bias, homogeneity and tampering.

Global Engagement on AI Standards

AI systems are transforming society not only within the U.S., but around the world. A Plan for Global Engagement on AI Standards (NIST AI 100-5), today’s third finalized publication, is designed to drive the worldwide development and implementation of AI-related consensus standards, cooperation and coordination, and information sharing.

The guidance is informed by priorities outlined in the NIST-developed Plan for Federal Engagement in AI Standards and Related Tools and is tied to the National Standards Strategy for Critical and Emerging Technology. This publication suggests that a broader range of multidisciplinary stakeholders from many countries participate in the standards development process.