Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute President Martin A. Schmidt ’81, Ph.D., has been appointed to the CHIPS Industrial Advisory Committee (IAC). This group of leaders from industry, academia, federal laboratories, and other areas provides guidance to U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo on the nation’s semiconductor research and development initiatives supporting CHIPS for America. 

Schmidt, an internationally recognized leader and pioneer in the microelectronics field, has a career marked by ongoing collaborations with industry executives, entrepreneurs, government officials, and the world’s foremost researchers and inventors. 

In a recent press release issued by Senator Chuck Schumer on the appointment, Schmidt said:

“I applaud Senator Schumer and our entire federal delegation for their leadership on CHIPS. I am honored to serve on the CHIPS Industrial Advisory Committee and advise Secretary Raimondo on strengthening the U.S. semiconductor industry through innovative and strategic research and development. Having been involved in semiconductor research and education for my entire career, I am honored to represent the nation’s first science and technological research university in this endeavor, working together with industry, government, and other educational institutions to create new and promising opportunities in semiconductors now and in the years to come.”

Enacted by the federal government in 2022, the CHIPS and Science Act aims to revitalize and reshore semiconductor manufacturing and accelerate technological progress in the United States. 

Schmidt’s appointment to the IAC is the latest chapter in RPI’s continued leadership in driving the economic vitality and security of the Capital Region and the nation. 

For example, RPI has made major investments in hiring new faculty in semiconductors and related fields, many of them as part of the Future Chips Constellation, an interdisciplinary team of endowed chairs performing high-impact research in semiconductor technology to address next-generation challenges in computing.

Additionally, RPI is strongly embedded in the region’s semiconductor ecosystem. RPI is a founding member of the Northeast Regional Defense Technology Hub (NORDTECH), a regional coalition of public and private sector experts in the Microelectronics Commons region in and around New York State, established in September 2023 as part of the first major award from the U.S. CHIPS and Science Act. Furthermore, RPI has recently expanded its footprint at the Albany Nanotechnology Complex, putting RPI researchers and staff in the heart of semiconductor innovation, not just in New York State but in the country. 

RPI is also focused on growing the chips workforce. RPI’s new Master’s in Semiconductor Technology program and the popular courses in semiconductor manufacturing, co-taught with industry experts, are preparing students for the industry, and the RPI-HVCC Semiconductor Scholars Program and the Chips Ambassadors program exposes community college and K-12 students to careers in the field.