Stricter choices needed for growth opportunities in the Dutch semicon industry

To ensure the technological leadership of the Netherlands in the semiconductor sector, focus is needed on three strategic technology areas: heterogeneous integration, metrology & inspection, and new IC architectures based on chiplets. This is evident from the report 'Semicon Deepdive: Setting New Ambitions' that is being presented today by Invest-NL at the TNO Semicon Event in Eindhoven.

The global dependency on only a few players in the semiconductor industry emphasises the importance of a strong European and Dutch chip industry. The Netherlands holds a solid position with global players such as ASML and a vibrant ecosystem of innovative semiconductor deep tech startups and scale-ups.

Dutch role in European semiconductor strategy

According to the Deep Tech Fund of Invest-NL, now is the time to make sharp choices, based on international technological developments and the strength of the Dutch ecosystem. Together with nine other EU countries within the so-called European Semicon Coalition, work is underway on a stronger European chip industry.

Netherlands can make a difference by focusing on three strategic technology areas: heterogeneous integration, metrology & inspection, and new IC architectures based on chiplets. For example, the latter are specialised mini-chips that together form one smart, powerful chip. Chiplets not only offer opportunities to drastically reduce design costs for startups, but also make it possible to organise the capital-intensive production of chips more efficiently and scalable. This increases the financing potential for new companies and strengthens the Netherlands' earning capacity within Europe. Investments from larger European funds, for example, are necessary to support the scaling phase of semiconductor deep tech startups.

Investment and collaboration

By providing risk-bearing capital to companies with high potential and by collaborating with public and private parties in the ecosystem, Invest-NL helps to truly get deep tech innovations off the ground. In addition to investments, collaboration is needed. TNO, Techleap, and Invest-NL announced an alliance two weeks ago to stimulate the development of technology, entrepreneurship, and scaling up.

The TNO Semicon Event - The research report will be presented today to Serpil Tascioglu, Director of Clusters & Industry Policy at the Ministry of Economic Affairs. This will take place during the TNO Semicon Event at the High Tech Campus in Eindhoven. About 300 decision-makers, engineers, and policymakers from the semiconductor industry and knowledge institutes will gather here. Speakers during the event include representatives from ASML, Intel, Nearfield Instruments, the European Commission, Brainport Eindhoven, and the Ministry of Economic Affairs.