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Selection Committee Announces Leaders to Operate the CHIPS National Semiconductor Technology Center

An independent selection committee recently announced the incoming board of trustees that are expected to oversee a nonprofit entity that will operate the National Semiconductor Technology Center (NSTC). The NSTC is the core research and development (R&D) component of the Department of Commerce’s CHIPS for America program. The NSTC will be a collaboration hub for members of the entire semiconductor manufacturing and supplier ecosystem. It will accelerate innovation and help lower the cost and time required to bring new technologies to market. 

The newly selected board members will create a nonprofit entity that is expected to run the NSTC and hire executive leadership. The Department of Commerce intends to enter into a funding agreement with the newly formed nonprofit to begin operating the NSTC. 

The initial members of the incoming board of trustees are:

  • Robin Abrams, whose prior leadership roles include service as interim chief executive officer (CEO) of ZILOG Inc.; CEO of Firefly Communications Inc.; CEO of VeriFone; and president of Apple Americas.
  • Craig R. Barrett, the retired CEO and chairman of Intel Corporation.
  • L. Reginald (Reggie) Brothers, principal with MIT Lincoln Laboratory and an operating partner at AE Industrial.
  • Nicholas (Nick) Donofrio, a 44–year IBM veteran who led IBM's technology and innovation strategies from 1997 until his retirement in October 2008.
  • Donna L. Dubinsky, CEO of Palm Computing and Handspring.
  • Erica R.H. Fuchs, professor of engineering and public policy at Carnegie Mellon University and, by courtesy, the Department of Materials Science and Engineering and Heinz College of Information Systems and Public Policy.
  • James D. (Jim) Plummer, the John M. Fluke Professor of Electrical Engineering at Stanford University.

Additional information about the board members can be found here.

To learn more about the NSTC structure, see A Vision and Strategy for the National Semiconductor Technology Center, published in April 2023.