From groundbreaking to global ambitions, Texas A&M’s $226m semiconductor institute signals a bold push to fuse research, industry and workforce training in the US.
Texas A&M University has begun construction of a $226 million semiconductor research and development (R&D) facility in Bryan, Texas, the United States (US). The project, announced at a groundbreaking ceremony on 9 April 2026, with Governor Greg Abbott in attendance, forms part of the Texas CHIPS Act, signed into law in 2023 to strengthen the state’s role in advanced manufacturing and workforce training.
The new Texas A&M Semiconductor Institute will cover 80,000 square feet and include laboratories, training spaces, and a sealed cleanroom designed for full-scale production.
University officials said the facility will support research in areas such as process development, metrology, packaging, photonics, and radio-frequency (RF) technologies. Completion is scheduled for early 2028.
Glenn Hegar, chancellor of the Texas A&M University System, described the laboratories as “flexible” and intended to replicate real-world production environments. He said the project aims to connect research, industry and workforce development, offering students and trainees opportunities to work alongside semiconductor companies and transition directly into skilled careers.
Funding for the institute includes $205.5 million allocated by the university’s board of regents, of which $161.8 million is dedicated to construction. The building is the most expensive per square foot in the university’s history. Additional support spaces will include hazardous materials-handling, storage, and distribution facilities.
The institute is located on the Rellis campus, a 3,300-acre site already hosting projects in transportation, defence, energy and artificial intelligence (AI).
Meanwhile, Texas A&M has established partnerships with companies including Samsung, Tokyo Electron America and Cadence, and has signed a memorandum of understanding with Substrate, a San Francisco-based firm considering Texas for a multibillion-dollar fabrication plant.
The CHIPS Act provided $226.4 million to Texas A&M for the Semiconductor Institute and its Centre for Microdevices and Systems, alongside $440 million for the University of Texas at Austin’s Texas Institute of Electronics.
Lawmakers expanded the Texas Semiconductor Innovation Fund in 2025, bringing total appropriations close to $948 million.
