Belgian research institute Imec is teaming up Rapidus, a brand new electronic chip manufacturer.
Imec stands for Interuniversity Microelectronics Centre. The Leuven-based institute pushes for sustainable innovation in technology to contribute to a better future, and is an academic authority on chip technology.
It should therefore be no surprise that Imec would collaborate with a conglomerate of Softbank, Toyota, Sony and six other Japanese enterprises in a relationship where the Belgian research giant will undertake fundamental research that Rapidus can then take a step further.
Specifically, the two organisations will make nano chips together that will be smaller and stronger than chips used today in cars and mobile phones, for example. Imec intends to help make mass production of these smaller chips possible.
They will also work together with the Leading-edge Semiconductor Technology Centre, a Japanese research and development institute in the making.
Imec has been operating since 1984 as an independent research centre, starting at a time when Silicon Valley and major American players were booming. The centre has grown into a major business with more than five thousand employees.
Imec is also a key player in the European Commission’s goal to reach a 20% global market share in the productions of semiconductors by 2030.
