8


Recommendations

This chapter lists all the recommendations in the report, arranged under the general topics of modernization, research, design, manufacturing, regulatory concerns, intellectual property, workforce development, and agency coordination.

MODERNIZATION

The Department of Defense (DoD) (through the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment), as part of DoD’s ongoing or future public–private partnerships, should develop new processes and practices to accelerate the deployment of advanced chips into existing DoD platforms and equipment, to deploy modern electronic design automation tools, incorporating artificial intelligence, to facilitate and streamline the replacement of older chipsets thereby addressing security risks in legacy chips while improving size, weight, and performance where possible. (Recommendation 4.2)

The Department of Defense (DoD) (especially the Chief Digital and Artificial Intelligence Office) should prioritize partnering with industry over creating custom solutions, utilizing commercial technology wherever possible. DoD should partner closely with U.S. companies to creatively and nimbly adopt emerging technologies for defense purposes, with immediate urgent attention to artificial intelligence and potential superintelligent systems. (Recommendation 5.15)

The Department of Defense (through the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment, in partnership with the service branches) should develop an overarching microelectronics strategy for research, development, procurement, sustainment, and modernization. (Recommendation 5.16)

RESEARCH

The Department of Defense (through the director of the CHIPS Coordination Cell) should coordinate with the National Institute of Standards and Technology to invest in new metrology technologies that support next-generation semiconductor manufacturing. (Recommendation 4.7)

The Department of Defense (through the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering) should continue support for State-of-the-Art Heterogeneous Integrated Packaging (SHIP), SHIP 2.0, and other advanced semiconductor packaging research and development programs and initiatives, collaborating with commercial manufacturers to develop customized processes or capabilities when needed. (Recommendation 4.9)

The Department of Defense (through the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering) should focus on long-term scientific research in disruptive semiconductor technologies, including post-CMOS technologies, and ensure broader access to prototyping facilities for academic researchers and small to medium-sized firms. (Recommendation 5.3)

The Department of Defense (DoD) (through the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering) should create a flagship unit with expertise in hardware cybersecurity and modern chip design that DoD program managers can access as needed. DoD should explore embedding design teams from this unit within companies developing leading-edge chip designs to increase DoD’s technical expertise. (Recommendation 5.7)

DESIGN

The Department of Defense (DoD) (through the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment) should launch an effort that crosses service branches and programs to facilitate the cost-efficient use of electronic design automation tool licenses and establish a clearinghouse for DoD custom chip designs to be reused. (Recommendation 4.5)

The Department of Defense (through the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering) should organize a significant initiative, in partnership with industry, to leverage artificial intelligence and machine learning tools to substantially reduce the time and cost of application-specific integrated circuit design and software development for defense needs. (Recommendation 5.5)

The Department of Defense (through the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering) should build skills internally for modern chip design, partner with commercial-sector experts designing chips at advanced nodes, and tap into the Department of Commerce–supported supply chains for manufacturing necessary custom chips. (Recommendation 5.6)

MANUFACTURING

The Department of Defense (DoD) Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering should strengthen public–private partnerships (PPPs) that support semiconductor manufacturing, particularly for technology readiness levels 4–6. DoD should ensure these PPPs have long-range funding, agreed-upon intellectual property terms, clear goals, and success metrics. (Recommendation 4.1)

The Department of Defense (led by the Defense Logistics Agency in partnership with the director of the CHIPS Coordination Cell) should coordinate with the Departments of Energy, Commerce, and State to identify choke-point materials for semiconductor manufacturing and partner with private industry to actively cultivate a robust, geographically and geopolitically diverse supply base for each. (Recommendation 4.3)

The Department of Defense (through the Strategic Radiation-Hardened Electronics Council in coordination with the director of the CHIPS Coordination Cell) should partner with the Department of Commerce to establish a national center of excellence for radiation-hardened microelectronics design and testing to greatly accelerate the timeline for development of such components for national security and commercial applications. (Recommendation 4.6)

The Department of Defense (DoD) (through the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment) should review and update policies that limit it from manufacturing in commercial facilities. DoD should also increase the use of domestically manufactured chips where possible and

simplify procurement processes to streamline access to semiconductor suppliers. (Recommendation 5.9)

The Department of Defense (DoD) (through the director of the CHIPS Coordination Cell) should act to secure longer-term federal funding support for the semiconductor sector, beyond the term of the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022, to ensure DoD has continual access to the most advanced semiconductor technologies in the world. DoD should also ensure that these technologies can be sourced from diverse foundries located in the United States and friendly nations. (Recommendation 5.12)

The Department of Defense (DoD) (through the director of the CHIPS Coordination Cell) should act to ensure that federal capital and financing supports for the semiconductor sector are tied to agreements that guarantee it access to advanced semiconductors. The DoD Office of Strategic Capital should also prioritize financing for critical technology scale-up activities. (Recommendation 5.13)

REGULATORY CONCERNS

The Department of Defense (DoD) (through the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment) should accelerate efforts to implement an evidence-based assurance system to ensure fast and secure access by DoD programs to advanced commercial semiconductors, and also simplify bureaucratic processes and update relevant DoD instructions and policies in support of this effort. (Recommendation 5.8)

The Department of Defense (DoD) (through the Defense Technology Security Administration) should collaborate with relevant organizations to reduce the administrative burdens and improve the timeliness of decisions related to International Traffic in Arms Regulations, Export Administration Regulations, and the National Environmental Policy Act. DoD should consider forming a task force to review and reform these regulations. (Recommendation 5.10)

The Department of Defense (DoD) (through the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment) should lower barriers to utilizing domestic manufacturing entities, minimizing complex bureaucracy, regulations, and requirements, to obtain the custom chips that DoD needs. The process for determining where DoD’s manufacturing can be performed should have short response times so as to avoid unduly hindering DoD’s technology programs. (Recommendation 5.14)

INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY

The Department of Defense (DoD) (through the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering) should manage intellectual property (IP) rights based on technology readiness levels and intended end use, recognize private ownership of IP in the majority of cases, reserve government ownership only for extreme situations, conduct an audit to track DoD’s existing IP rights, and create a central, searchable records system. (Recommendation 5.11)

WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT

The Department of Defense (through the director of the CHIPS Coordination Cell) should partner with the National Institute of Standards and Technology and the National Science Foundation to implement and expand workforce education programs for the semiconductor sector, support the development of training programs, apprenticeships, and industry-recognized credentials, build alliances with community colleges, and promote regional public–private partnerships. (Recommendation 7.1)

The Department of Defense (through the director of the CHIPS Coordination Cell) should advocate for reforms to the immigration system to support the semiconductor workforce, including granting lawful permanent resident status to individuals with advanced science, technology, engineering, and mathematics degrees working in the semiconductor industry. (Recommendation 7.2)

AGENCY COORDINATION

The Department of Defense (through the director of the CHIPS Coordination Cell) should ensure that its semiconductor research and development efforts are closely integrated with the related agendas funded through the Departments of Commerce and Energy and the National Science Foundation. (Recommendation 4.4)

The Department of Defense (DoD) (through the director of the CHIPS Coordination Cell) should closely coordinate with the Department of Commerce on CHIPS Act incentive decisions to ensure funds are directed toward firms that can meet DoD’s needs. (Recommendation 4.8)

The Department of Defense (through the director of the CHIPS Coordination Cell) should coordinate with the National Institute of Standards and Technology on its semiconductor-related public–private partnership efforts, including via the Microelectronics Commons, to avoid duplication and ensure the exchange of promising advances. (Recommendation 5.1)

The Department of Defense (through the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering and the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment) should actively leverage its own programs and partner with the National Institute of Standards and Technology to connect academic researchers with industry partners and advanced fabrication and packaging facilities. (Recommendation 5.2)

The Department of Defense (DoD) (through the Chief Digital and Artificial Intelligence Office) should swiftly incorporate U.S.-origin commercially developed artificial intelligence (AI) models, chips, and infrastructure, and develop custom AI technologies for defense purposes, to maintain leadership in this transformative technology. DoD should also track leading-edge AI technologies and align DoD efforts with commercial interests to mitigate supply chain risks. (Recommendation 5.4)

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