Chips
A critical component of the AI technology stack, representing a key battleground in the US-China AI competition. The US currently holds a significant lead in this area.
First Mentioned
1/23/2026, 6:57:22 AM
Last Updated
1/23/2026, 7:02:49 AM
Research Retrieved
1/23/2026, 7:02:49 AM
Summary
In the context of modern technology, chips—also known as semiconductor chips or integrated circuits (ICs)—serve as the fundamental building blocks for nearly all electronic devices, ranging from consumer electronics to advanced military systems and artificial intelligence (AI). The United States currently maintains a leadership position in chip innovation, particularly through the 'permissionless innovation' model seen in Silicon Valley. However, this leadership is contested in a global 'power race' against China, where chips are a critical layer of the AI stack. To bolster domestic production and national security, the U.S. government has implemented the CHIPS and Science Act, managed by the Department of Commerce and NIST. Beyond their role in computing, chips are evolving through technologies like microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) and light-sensitive sensors, and they are categorized into four main types: Logic, Memory, ASICs, and SoCs.
Referenced in 1 Document
Research Data
Extracted Attributes
Key Component
Transistors (miniature electrical switches)
Main Categories
Logic chips, Memory chips, Application-specific integrated chips (ASICs), System-on-a-chip (SoC)
Primary Material
Silicon
Alternative Names
Microchips, Integrated Circuits (IC), Computer chips
Global Sales (2022)
573.5 billion Euro
Unit Shipments (2021)
1.15 trillion units
U.S. Legislative Framework
CHIPS and Science Act
Timeline
- Development of microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) begins in the late 1980s. (Source: Wikipedia)
1985-01-01
- Radio chips are successfully developed using RF CMOS processes. (Source: Wikipedia)
1998-01-01
- The Nobel Prize in Physics is awarded for the invention of light-sensitive semiconductor circuits (CCD sensors). (Source: Wikipedia)
2009-12-10
- Semiconductor unit sales reach a record 1.15 trillion shipments. (Source: ASML)
2021-12-31
- Global semiconductor industry sales top 573.5 billion Euro. (Source: ASML)
2022-12-31
Wikipedia
View on WikipediaChips
Chips most commonly refers to: Chips or french fries, long chunks of potato that have been deep fried or baked Chip (snack), or crisps, a snack food in the form of thin crispy slices Potato chips, thin crispy slices of deep-fried or baked potatoes Chips may also refer to:
Web Search Results
- Potato chips - Wikipedia
Potato chips | A pile of kettle-cooked potato chips from Utz Brands | | Alternative names | Crisps (British and Irish English) | | Course | Snack, side dish | | Place of origin | United Kingdom | | Serving temperature | Room temperature | | Media: Potato chips | Potato chips (North American and Australian English; often just chips) or crisps (British and Irish English) are thin slices of potato (or a thin deposit of potato paste) that have been deep-fried, baked, or air-fried until crunchy. They are commonly served as a snack, side dish, or appetizer. The basic chips are cooked and salted; additional varieties are manufactured using various flavorings and ingredients including herbs, spices, cheeses, other natural flavors, artificial flavors, and additives. [...] In the United Kingdom and Ireland they are called "crisps", whilst "chips" refers to french fries (as in "fish and chips"). In Australia, some parts of South Africa, New Zealand, India, and the West Indies, especially in Barbados, both forms of potato product are simply known as "chips", as are the larger "home-style" variety. In the north of New Zealand, they are sometimes affectionately known as "chippies"; however, they are marketed as "chips" throughout the country.[citation needed] In Australia and New Zealand, a distinction is sometimes made between "hot chips" (fried potatoes) and "chips" or "potato chips". In Bangladesh, they are generally known as "chip" or "chips", and much less frequently as "crisps" (pronounced "kirisp") and locally, alu bhaja. [...] In German-speaking countries (Austria, Germany: "Kartoffelchips", often shortened to "Chips"; Switzerland: "Pommes Chips") and in countries of the former Yugoslavia, fried thin potato slices are known as "chips" (locally pronounced very similarly to the English pronunciation), with a clear distinction from French fries. In Brazil, "home-style" potato chips are known as batatas portuguesas ("Portuguese potatoes") if their sides are relatively smooth and batatas prussianas ("Prussian potatoes") if their sides show a wafer biscuit-like pattern, whilst American-like industrial uniform potato chips made from a fried potato purée-based dough are known as "batata chips" ("potato chips"), or just "chips".[citation needed] ## Health concerns
- CHIPS FOR AMERICA | NIST
## About CHIPS for America Semiconductors, or chips, are tiny electronic devices that are integral to America’s economic and national security. These devices power tools as simple as a light switch and as complex as a fighter jet or a smartphone. Semiconductors power our consumer electronics, automobiles, data centers, critical infrastructure, and virtually all military systems. They are also essential building blocks of the technologies that will shape our future, including artificial intelligence, biotechnology, and clean energy. [...] ## News and Press Releases ### Department of Commerce Awards CHIPS Incentives to a Subsidiary of Korea Zinc (Crucible Metals) to Support a State-of-the-Art Smelter and Critical Minerals Processing Facility in the United States The Department of Commerce’s CHIPS Program awarded $210 million in direct funding under the CHIPS and Science Act to a subsidiary of Korea Zinc — Crucible ### Department of Commerce and NIST Announce CHIPS Research and Development Letter of Intent with xLight, Inc. for Extreme Ultraviolet Lithography WASHINGTON – The Department of Commerce’s CHIPS Research and Development Office, part of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), announced [...] ### Department of Commerce Announces CHIPS Incentives Letter of Intent with Vulcan Elements to Support Domestic Manufacturing of Critical Rare Earth Magnets WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Department of Commerce’s CHIPS Program announced today the signing of a non-binding preliminary letter of intent to provide $50 million ### NIST Issues Broad Agency Announcement for Proposals to Advance Microelectronics Technologies The CHIPS for America funding opportunity will support critical research, prototyping and commercial solutions that advance microelectronics technology in the To request a meeting with a CHIPS staff member or an appearance at an event, visit . The CHIPS Incentives Program Portal can be found at ## Contacts For General Inquiries about CHIPS for America
- CHIPS - Rotten Tomatoes
1/5 Taken purely on its own, Chips is a wretched attempt at an action comedy. I can only imagine how it looks to viewers with emotional investment in the source material Go to Full Review Wenlei Ma News.com.au 04/05/2017 1.5/5 A disclaimer reads "The California Highway Patrol does not endorse this film". It's hard to imagine anyone does. Go to Full Review Bill Chambers Film Freak Central 03/03/2022 2.5/4 Me, I found Pauline Kael's review of Pee-Wee's Big Adventure echoing in my ears: "I liked the movie's unimportance. It isn't saying anything." Go to Full Review Drew Dietsch FANDOM 12/29/2021 3/5 [...] CHIPS ## What to Know Critics Consensus CHiPS abandons the endearing innocence of its source material, using the titular cop show's premise as a setup for aggressively lowbrow gags that prove only mildly arresting at best. Read Critics Reviews ## Critics Reviews View More Randy Myers San Jose Mercury News 01/26/2018 2.5/4 It is really no plot at all, merely a vehicle to allow Shepard and Pena to riff about kinky bedroom habits, homophobia and so on. Those flippant exchanges fluctuate from funny to flat. Go to Full Review Jake Wilson The Age (Australia) 04/12/2017 1/5 [...] 3/5 As a comedy, it's serviceable but never able to stake out something that makes it memorable. As an action film, it's a delightful throwback to a bygone era. Go to Full Review Matt Brunson Film Frenzy 11/08/2021 1.5/4 The crudity flows as easily as the violence in this low-IQ outing, with a special emphasis on gay panic humor and an even greater emphasis on sexist humor (this is the sort of film that suggests that if a woman isn't a 10, she might as well kill herself). Go to Full Review Read all reviews ## Audience Reviews View More
- The basics of microchips - ASML
Microchips are everywhere. In 2021, semiconductor unit sales reached a record 1.15 trillion-unit shipments, and in 2022, global semiconductor industry sales topped €573.5 billion. By delivering new functionalities, better performance and lower cost with each generation, advances in chips have spawned new products and transformed industries. \Data source: WSTS #### What’s a microchip? A microchip (also called a chip, a computer chip, an integrated circuit or IC) is a set of electronic circuits on a small flat piece of silicon. On the chip, transistors act as miniature electrical switches that can turn a current on or off. The pattern of tiny switches is created on the silicon wafer by adding and removing materials to form a multilayered latticework of interconnected shapes. [...] In terms of functionality, there are four main categories: Logic chips, Memory chips, application-specific integrated chips (ASICs) and system-on-a-chip devices (SoCs). The two most common types of chips, Logic chips and Memory chips, are digital: they manipulate and store bits and bytes using transistors. ASICs and SoCs are mainly a mix of analog and digital. [...] Memory chips store information. There are two types of Memory: volatile and non-volatile. Volatile Memory chips, such as DRAM (Dynamic Random Access Memory), are the ‘working memory’ chips that save data only while the device’s power is turned on. Non-volatile Memory chips such as NAND Flash save data even after the device is turned off. For example, DRAM helps to run programs on your device, whereas NAND stores your photos. Whereas DRAM is fast, NAND is slow to read and write data. ASICs are simple, single-purpose chips used for performing repetitive processing routines such as scanning a barcode.
- Integrated circuit - Wikipedia
Charge-coupled devices, and the closely related active-pixel sensors, are chips that are sensitive to light. They have largely replaced photographic film in scientific, medical, and consumer applications. Billions of these devices are now produced each year for applications such as cellphones, tablets, and digital cameras. This sub-field of ICs won the Nobel Prize in 2009. Very small mechanical devices driven by electricity can be integrated onto chips, a technology known as microelectromechanical systems (MEMS). These devices were developed in the late 1980s and are used in a variety of commercial and military applications. Examples include DLP projectors, inkjet printers, and accelerometers and MEMS gyroscopes used to deploy automobile airbags. [...] Analog ICs, such as sensors, power management circuits "Power network design (IC)"), and operational amplifiers (op-amps), process continuous signals, and perform analog functions such as amplification, active filtering, demodulation, and mixing. ICs can combine analog and digital circuits on a chip to create functions such as analog-to-digital converters and digital-to-analog converters. Such mixed-signal circuits offer smaller size and lower cost, but must account for signal interference. Prior to the late 1990s, radios could not be fabricated in the same low-cost CMOS processes as microprocessors. But since 1998, radio chips have been developed using RF CMOS processes. Examples include Intel's DECT cordless phone, or 802.11 (Wi-Fi) chips created by Atheros and other companies. [...] A system-on-a-chip (SoC or SOC) is an integrated circuit in which all the components needed for a computer or other system are included on a single chip. The design of such a device can be complex and costly, and whilst performance benefits can be had from integrating all needed components on one die, the cost of licensing and developing a one-die machine still outweigh having separate devices. With appropriate licensing, these drawbacks are offset by lower manufacturing and assembly costs and by a greatly reduced power budget: because signals among the components are kept on-die, much less power is required (see Packaging). Further, signal sources and destinations are physically closer on die, reducing the length of wiring and therefore latency "Latency (engineering)"), transmission
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CHiPS, 200, 4th Avenue, Brooklyn, Kings County, New York, 11217, United States
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