[SINGAPORE] Nasdaq-listed GlobalFoundries and the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*Star) have agreed to share facilities and equipment, to expand capabilities in advanced packaging.
GlobalFoundries Singapore senior vice-president and general manager Tan Yew Kong and A*Star Institute of Microelectronics executive director Terence Gan signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on Tuesday (May 20).
Under its framework, research and development (R&D) agency A*Star will provide GlobalFoundries with access to its R&D facilities, capabilities and technical support. Meanwhile, the wafer fabricator will provide A*Star with critical equipment, to further its R&D efforts.
Access to GlobalFoundries’ customers will help to refine A*Star’s R&D, while the manufacturer can tap on A*Star’s R&D experience, Gan said.
Advanced packaging combines multiple semiconductor chips and processes into a single “compact, high-performance, high-efficiency product”, said Tan.
He expects the collaboration to accelerate GlobalFoundries’ development of its advanced packaging solutions in Singapore.
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Advanced packaging has become a key R&D priority for the semiconductor industry amid growing demand for artificial intelligence (AI) and other data-intensive applications.
But Gan said the technology, which is faster and more energy efficient, has applications even beyond AI and high-performance computing, and is a growth driver for the industry.
The MOU will also support the company’s talent development, enabling employees to acquire critical skills as the industry evolves, Tan said, adding that “at least 30, 50 people” will receive training.
GlobalFoundries and A*Star added that the partnership will expand the manufacturer’s offerings, allowing it to provide one-stop solutions for the manufacturing, processing, packaging and testing of semiconductor chips at its Singapore manufacturing facility.
On the decision to work with non-US partners in light of US President Donald Trump’s threatened tariffs on semiconductors, GlobalFoundries’ Tan said that one of the selling points is its manufacturing capabilities across three locations – the US, Germany and Singapore.
“Our strategy has always been to be able to produce capability to serve the different customer markets,” he said, noting that Singapore serves as a base to cater to the Asian market.
The fabricators’ technologies also overlap, he added, meaning that what is produced in one geography can be replicated in another.
The latest MOU follows an earlier announcement by GlobalFoundries in January, where it announced plans to create a new centre in its New York facility, for advanced packaging and testing of US-made essential chips.
