The Swiss semiconductor industry, backed by leading universities, is laying plans to build a national chip production and research centre. The proposed facility is the centrepiece of a strategy to prevent the domestic chip sector from being left behind by other big-spending nations. +Get the most important news from Switzerland in your inbox The proposed Chip FabLab (fabrication laboratory), at the Innovation Park Zurich, is intended to develop and produce chips for high-end niche applications, such as robotics, self-driving vehicles, satellite communication and quantum computing. The consortium behind the plan is seeking state support and financing to get it off the ground. The FabLab would be modelled on the Finnish VTT Micronova and Belgian Imec FabLabs that have stimulated local semiconductor sectors. “Switzerland will miss out if we don’t follow this example. We must move forwards fast, or our industry will disappear,” warns Jürg Leuthold, who heads the department of ...
