SINGAPORE - GlobalFoundries (GF), one of the world’s top contract chipmakers, has acquired Singapore’s Advanced Micro Foundry (AMF), in a boost to the Republic’s role in the artificial intelligence-driven data centre and communications boom.
The move will strengthen Singapore’s position as a trusted, advanced semiconductor manufacturing and innovation hub, and a critical node in the global chip supply chain, said A*Star, which spun off AMF in 2017.
It will make GF the world’s largest foundry by revenue for silicon photonics technology.
GF and A*Star – which did not disclose the financial details of the acquisition – also entered into a research partnership agreement to advance silicon photonics technologies.
The breakthrough technology integrates optical and electronic components onto a single silicon chip, using light – or photons – instead of electrical signals to achieve ultra-fast and energy-efficient data transfer. This is critical for handling the massive datasets required by AI applications.
“GF’s acquisition marks the next phase of AMF’s journey, scaling to bring world-class silicon photonics innovations developed in Singapore to global markets,” A*Star said.
The US chip giant plans to establish a silicon photonics research and development centre of excellence (COE) in Singapore.
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