U.S. Semiconductor Initiative Collapses After Funding Cut, Tech Projects in Disarray

The Biden administration's flagship semiconductor research program lies in ruins after Trump-appointed Commerce Secretary David Lutnick withdrew $7.4 billion in funding. Natcast, the nonprofit managing America's National Semiconductor Technology Center, saw 90% of its 110-person workforce dismissed within weeks of the August decision.

Major tech firms including Nvidia, Intel, and Apple had committed to the initiative designed to maintain U.S. leadership in chip manufacturing. Lutnick dismissed the program as a 'semiconductor slush fund,' alleging improper establishment by the previous administration. The abrupt termination canceled a high-profile Austin conference featuring Nvidia and OpenAI speakers.

Nearly $2 billion in active projects across Arizona, New York, California and Texas were frozen mid-development. Three partially constructed research centers in Albany and other locations now face uncertain futures. Over 50 sources describe chaotic scenes as contractors received immediate stop-work orders, with Commerce Department officials becoming unreachable.