Chipmaker GlobalFoundries was awarded $1.5 billion in funding by the US government through the country’s CHIPS and Science Act, as the nation pushes to boost local semiconductor supply chains.

GlobalFoundries stated it will use the funds to expand existing manufacturing capacity in Vermont and New York, as well as create a new facility in the latter to manufacture next-generation gallium nitride semiconductors for use in electric vehicles, power grids, data centres, and 5G and 6G smartphones, among others.

Sites will also be used to produce chips essential for automotive, IoT, AI and other vital areas.

The CHIPS and Science Act includes a $52 billion funding pot to boost domestic semiconductor research and manufacturing, as the US attempts to compete against China and other markets in the global sector.

Longer-term, GlobalFoundries said it expects to invest more than $12 billion over more than ten years through public-private partnerships, with support from central and state governments, and ecosystem partners.

Thomas Caulfield, president and CEO of GlobalFoundries, said the investment will play an important role in making the US semiconductor sector “more globally competitive and resilient”.

“With new onshore capacity and technology on the horizon, as an industry we now need to turn our attention to increasing the demand for US-made chips and to growing our talented US semiconductor workforce.”

GlobalFoundries’ partners including Qualcomm and AMD welcomed the investment.