A series of Samsung chip modules. Photo: SeongJoon Cho/Bloomberg via Getty Images
President Biden this morning announced $6.4 billion in grants to Samsung for the South Korean company to expand chip production in the Austin area.
Why it matters: The massive Biden-led investment in chip production aims to reduce dependence on China and Taiwan.
The preliminary agreement with the Commerce Department "will unleash over $40 billion in investment from Samsung, and cement central Texas's role as a state-of-the-art semiconductor ecosystem, creating at least 21,500 jobs and leveraging up to $40 million in CHIPS funding to train and develop the local workforce," the White House announcement says.
Zoom in: The agreement includes an existing site in Austin and a new chip manufacturing hub in Taylor, a charming town about 35 miles to thenortheast.
"Aside from manufacturing chips, Samsung will now construct a research and development facility in Taylor as well as an advanced factory for packaging them, the final step before semiconductors can be used in electronic systems," the N.Y. Times reports.
What they're saying: The subsidies will "improve our economy and jobs and manufacturing here in the United States ... rather than China or in countries vulnerable to the current threat from China," U.S. Rep. Michael McCaul, a Republican who represents parts of Austin, said last year.
The big picture: The announcement positions Central Texas, already home to key chip-making facilities, as a 21st-century manufacturing hub.
