CHIPS Act Architects at Krach Institute for Tech Diplomacy at Purdue Welcome Commerce Department’s SK hynix Announcement

CHIPS and Science Act Award to Purdue-based SK hynix Helps Realize Bipartisan Bill’s Potential to Secure Trusted Tech Supply Chain

WEST LAFAYETTE, IN & WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Krach Institute for Tech Diplomacy at Purdue, whose leadership was instrumental in the design of the CHIPS and Science Act, praised the announcement by the U.S. Department of Commerce of nearly a billion dollar combined grant and loan package to SK hynix’s AI memory chip facility at Purdue Research Park as part of the bipartisan bill’s implementation. This award builds on the South Korean semiconductor manufacturer’s April 2024 announcement that it will invest nearly $4 billion to build an advanced packaging fabrication and R&D facility on Purdue’s campus in West Lafayette, IN. 

“The CHIPS and Science Act was always about securing the semiconductor supply chain and bringing back chip manufacturing to the United States. It’s the most important industry in the world. SK hynix’s investment in Indiana and the Commerce Department’s recognition of the significance of the SK hynix-Purdue partnership, will help generate high-skill jobs and boost America’s economic competitiveness,” said Keith Krach, the co-founder and Chairman of the Krach Institute and one of the architects of the CHIPS and Science Act. “Most importantly, this award will help the U.S. and the free world maintain our competitive edge over authoritarian adversaries.” 

“The collaboration between the Commerce Department, SK hynix, and Purdue is the perfect example of the power of Tech Diplomacy. Because technology plays a central role in the 21st century, national security is not just the government’s job. Tech companies and academic institutions are full partners in ensuring freedom triumphs over authoritarianism,” said Michelle Giuda, CEO of the Krach Institute. “We commend the Commerce Department’s announcement and are grateful to SK hynix for its investment in America’s leading national security university.” 

“We are excited about the Department of Commerce’s support, through the CHIPS and Science Act, of the largest semiconductor production facility located at a university in the U.S.,” Purdue President and co-founder of the Krach Institute Mung Chiang said. “This facility will be transformational, as SK hynix leads globally in AI memory chips. And as the leading American university in this foundational technology, Purdue University is committed to co-creating jobs, workforce and innovation in our state and the Silicon Heartland.”

“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. During Raimondo’s visit to Purdue, she remarked, “I have to tell you all how blown away we have been with what we have seen at Purdue. Incredible. This is what America needs; public sector working with the private sector working with universities tapping into the next generation of talent, solving problems in an interdisciplinary way. You have all the ingredients.”

As America’s top economic diplomat, then-Under Secretary of State Keith Krach and his team orchestrated the landmark onshoring of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) to the United States. The original $12 billion TSMC deal resulted in the development of the bipartisan CHIPS and Science Act, which has already generated more than $350 billion in domestic chip manufacturing investment, creating thousands of U.S. jobs. The Krach Institute for Tech Diplomacy at Purdue continues the mission to advance freedom through trusted technology. 

About the Krach Institute for Tech Diplomacy at Purdue

The Krach Institute is the world’s preeminent trusted technology accelerator. As the leader in the new category of Tech Diplomacy, the Institute integrates technology expertise, Silicon Valley strategies and foreign policy tools to build the Global Trusted Tech Network of governments, companies, organizations and individuals to accelerate the innovation and adoption of trusted technology and ensure technology advances freedom. 

Visit the Krach Institute online at TechDiplomacy.org and follow us on X, Facebook, LinkedIn and YouTube. Enroll in the Tech Diplomacy Academy to learn what you need to know now about key emerging technologies and their impact on business, policy and the global economy. Subscribe to the Institute’s weekly newsletter Tech Diplomacy Now for the latest news at the intersection of high tech and foreign policy.