July 6, 2024
Senator Chuck Schumer, Senator Kirsten Gillibrand and Congressman Nick Langworthy announced recently, that the University of Buffalo and some semi conductor companies in Western New York and Central New York, are getting tens of millions dollars in grant money for the chip industry.
Wlea News asked Alfred University’s Professor David Gottfried about Alfred University’s reaction to this news and about the possibility of AU’s involvement in all of this. Gottfried tells us that Alfred University will very likely get some funding too, as AU was part of the original proposal. “We like to say that research and educational offerings at Alfred University are ‘semiconductor adjacent,'” said Gottfried. “Many of the materials used in the semiconductor industry are ceramics and glass. That includes everything from wafer processing, making the chips themselves, to the materials used in the advanced packaging needed to protect those chips from the outside environment, and allowing them to interact with the outside world. Another important aspect of this project will focus on workforce development – either focused on new workers entering the sector, incumbent workers needing to obtain new skills, or non-traditional students who may be transitioning from another industry entirely,” Gottfried explained.
