For years, much of the focus centered on engineers and chip designers. As new fabs and supplier facilities continue moving into Arizona, the labor demand is widening well beyond those roles. Technicians, facilities workers, maintenance specialists and cleanroom operators are becoming just as critical to the industry’s expansion. Addressing this, West-MEC recently opened what … [More]
What Happens After the Fabs Arrive
For the last several years, Arizona’s semiconductor momentum has largely been measured through expansion announcements, investment totals and construction updates. New fabs. New suppliers. New projects moving into the state are helping Arizona position itself as one of the country’s largest semiconductor hubs. But at the recent SEMI Arizona Chapter Breakfast Forum, the … [More]
How Skanska Is Powering Arizona’s Rise
Building the Workforce Behind the Global Semiconductor Revolution
Arizona’s semiconductor industry is rapidly expanding, fueled by robust international and local investments that are transforming Phoenix's economic landscape. Yet, as the sector grows, so does the urgent need for a highly skilled workforce capable of constructing the advanced infrastructure it demands. While construction remains one of the most in-demand jobs in Arizona, the … [More]
Arizona’s Tech Growth on Display at AZ Tech Week
With more than 400 events across the state drawing people to panels, workshops, startup pitches and meetups, Arizona’s first statewide Tech Week wrapped up April 12. The turnout says something about where Arizona’s tech economy is right now and how much of that activity is directly or indirectly tied to semiconductor growth. Unlike a typical conference, Arizona Tech Week … [More]
Artemis II: Arizona’s Role beyond the Launch
Semiconductor and aerospace & defense industries share a symbiotic relationship
Artemis II sent astronauts around the moon for the first time in decades — a 10-day mission that lifted off from the same pad used during the Apollo era. Naturally, most of the attention was on the rocket, the crew and the mission itself. What’s less visible is how much of that work happens outside the launch site, including in Arizona. Sen. Mark Kelly, a former astronaut, … [More]
Building a Semiconductor Community in the Desert
To date, $34.5 billion has been invested in Arizona’s semiconductor industry, with the promise of $100s of billions more to come. With that kind of investment, it is no wonder that the area near the TSMC site is beginning to attract more than just manufacturing. Housing, infrastructure and support services are being planned alongside it. Developments like Halo Vista, a … [More]
Arizona Deepens Semiconductor Ties with Taiwan and Japan
In the span of a few weeks, Arizona has signed three separate MOUs with Taiwan and Japan, each focused on a more practical goal: how to work together. Taiwan is one of Arizona’s largest trading partners, and Japan continues to be a leading source of foreign investment in the state. The relationships have been building for years, but what’s changing now is how coordinated they … [More]
What Happens when Memory Can’t Keep Up
With increasing demand, rising memory costs are showing up in everyday products
As manufacturers steer more memory capacity toward AI data centers, customers in other parts of the market are starting to feel the effects. Supply is getting tighter, long-term commitments are harder to secure and some buyers are being forced to plan around uncertainty. Demand is rising quickly, but new supply isn’t keeping pace. Much of the industry’s investment is going … [More]
Semiconductor Seminar in Arizona Tries to Answer What Comes Next
Global Semiconductor Hub, a semiconductor seminar held in Arizona, brought together industry leaders to discuss what comes next for AI, and much of the conversation focused less on software and more on the hardware needed to support it. Arizona Commerce Authority President and CEO Sandra Watson opened the program, placing the discussion in the context of the state’s growing … [More]
Amkor Doubles Down on Arizona
Amkor Technology Inc. is doubling down on Peoria, raising its projected 2026 capital spending to between $2.5 billion and $3 billion, with much of that investment directed toward the advanced packaging campus taking shape near Loop 303. The project is supported by more than $2.85 billion in government incentives and tax credits, funding tied to construction milestones as the … [More]
The Power of Global Partnerships in Shaping the Future of Innovation
… And Arizona’s expanding role in advanced technology
Global partnerships are no longer just a public-sector initiative or a trade mission objective. For corporations in fast-moving, system-level industries, it has become a strategic lever for innovation, supply chain resilience and early visibility into emerging technologies. The most effective models link startups, established industry, universities and government into a … [More]
From Fabs to Classrooms
Arizona’s semiconductor buildout is no longer measured only in factories and cleanrooms. It is being shaped in classrooms, research labs and, increasingly, in cross-border partnerships. The University of Arizona has formalized an agreement with National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University, an applied research powerhouse deeply embedded in Taiwan’s semiconductor industry. Together, … [More]
Strong AI Demand Pushes TSMC toward Its Next Phase in Arizona
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. is having a moment, and Arizona is watching closely. The world’s largest contract chipmaker reported a 35% jump in fourth-quarter profit, beating market expectations and capping a year of record performance driven largely by demand for advanced chips used in artificial intelligence. At the same time, TSMC signaled that its U.S. … [More]
DSV Builds Its Largest Arizona Facility in Mesa
This month, DSV began construction on a nearly 1 million-square-foot logistics facility in Mesa, equipped with state-of-the-art technology and sustainable design elements, including solar panels, just east of Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport. “DSV’s investment in a new 950,000-square-foot facility in southeast Mesa is a major vote of confidence in our region’s growing role in … [More]
Semiconductor Chemicals Firm Targets Casa Grande for Next Arizona Facility
Arizona’s chip growth is no longer confined to the City of Phoenix and its immediate suburbs
Arizona’s semiconductor growth is starting to show up in places beyond the major fab sites. Increasingly, it is appearing in land transactions, rail-served sites and industrial facilities built to support large-scale manufacturing. One of the clearest signals of that shift came in late December, when Sunlit Arizona purchased 40 acres in Casa Grande for a planned hydrofluoric … [More]
As Data Centers Expand, Arizona Debates Power, Water and Local Control
Data centers are becoming one of the most visible and contested pieces of Arizona’s technology growth. As demand for cloud computing and artificial intelligence accelerates, communities across the state are weighing the benefits of large-scale digital infrastructure against concerns about water, power and long-term local impact. Arizona’s appeal to data center developers is … [More]
NGK Expands Phoenix Facility to Support Semiconductor Equipment Demand
NGK Insulators is expanding its Arizona-based operations as semiconductor manufacturers continue to invest in U.S. production. The Japan-based company said it will invest about $56 million to expand FM Industries, its Phoenix subsidiary that produces precision components used in semiconductor manufacturing equipment. The expansion is expected to increase production capacity … [More]
NXP’s Chandler Exit Highlights Shifts in the 5G Market
NXP Semiconductors’ decision to exit the radio power market and close its Chandler gallium nitride facility by 2027 raised questions about 5G, compound semiconductors and Arizona’s role in the global chip industry. The Dutch semiconductor company said the decision reflects current conditions in the 5G infrastructure market. Network upgrades have slowed, particularly among … [More]
