Sen. Chuck Schumer Announces $40M Grant, UB President Satish Tripathi Welcomes Funds

July 8 :
The Buffalo-Rochester-Syracuse region will receive $40 million for semiconductor manufacturing, research, and education. U.S. Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer, D-NY, made the announcement alongside University at Buffalo President Satish K. Tripathi and Venu Govindaraju, Vice President for Research and Economic Development.

According to a news release issued by UB on July 3, 2024, the money is a component of the CHIPS & Science Act that Congress approved in 2022. While most of the funding for technology hubs has gone to major coastal cities, $464 million was distributed to eleven more metro areas across the country.

Schumer is cited as saying in a release that this is a huge win for the Buffalo-Rochester-Syracuse region, as it is the first major Tech Hub award in the country. Along the I-90 corridor, the future of American semiconductors lies in upstate New York.

As she made the announcement, Schumer was at Buffalo's Northland Workforce Training Center. Senator Schumer, Representative Tim Kennedy, and others were thanked by Tripathi. Officially known as the NY SMART I-Corridor Tech Hub, he said that UB will be heavily involved in the project.

An article on the University of Buffalo's website stated, "We are delighted to leverage our research and industry relationships in support of this regional tech hub." The university went on to say that the project will "turn our region into a national center for semiconductor production reinforced by a solid supply chain and workforce. Monroe Community College in Rochester, according to the UB report, will spearhead an initiative to educate thousands of people for the semiconductor industry. Syracuse University, meanwhile, will help small and medium-sized businesses bring their products to market.