A newly formed Texas Innovation Consortium Fund will promote microchip production in the state and expand workforce training programs at colleges and universities, Gov. Greg Abbott announced March 19 at the University of Texas at Dallas.

Abbott said the fund is an attempt to keep Texas at the top of semiconductor manufacturing by attracting additional public and private investment to the state.

"We're here to connect the dots. Today is a historic day," he said. "Texas will lead the way in research, design and manufacturing of semiconductors. Texas will not only be competitive with other states, but other countries. We know what's at stake."

In June 2023, Abbott signed the Texas Chips Act into law to attract more chipmakers to the state's already strong semiconductor manufacturing industry. The bill committed $698 million to a new semiconductor fund and an additional $660 million for advanced research centers at the University of Texas at Austin and Texas A&M University.

Companies have already begun tapping into Chips Act incentives as the U.S. is expected to award Samsung with $6 billion that will help expand its projects in Texas elsewhere. The South Korea-based chipmaker previously announced plans to build a $17 billion chip factory in Taylor to supplement an existing facility in Austin.

In addition, Dallas-based Texas Instruments plans to invest up to $30 billion in a semiconductor manufacturing campus in Sherman.

"The numbers don't lie. We're No. 1 in manufacturing and jobs in this nation. But we're not satisfied with that," Speaker Dade Phelan said. "Whoever controls the chips controls the future of this world. We want Texas to be No. 1. We're sending a clear message that we're not satisfied being the leader in the nation. We want to be the leader in the world."

Dr. David Daniel, president emeritus of UT Dallas, will lead the consortium.

"It's such a globally competitive industry," Daniel said. "The work we're doing has the potential to touch everyone's lives. Success cannot be achieved without exceptional people. As these industries grow, we're going to need thousands of Texans to contribute to our specific job needs."

It's a big day for UT Dallas students, said Manuel Quevedo, a UT Dallas representative for the consortium.

"We understand the driving force behind this is industry and that's going to require our students as we prepare them to join the workforce," he said.

Sixteen universities across Texas will have a representative on the consortium. Besides Daniel, Phelan also appointed six others to the consortium's executive committee.

• Sameer Pendharkar, vice president of technology for Texas Instruments.
• Lawrence Smith, chair of the board for Austin-based Tokyo Electron U.S.
• Guy Schweppe, senior vice president of technology and software procurement at Round Rock-based Dell Technologies.
• Jeffrey Smith, vice president of Infra Technology at Samsung Austin Semiconductor.
• Eric Almgren, managing director at Austin-based Castle Peak Advisors.
• David Lee, director of corporate strategy at South Korea-based Dongjin U.S..

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