With this strategy, the Federal Government establishes a framework to implement targeted and consistent measures in microelectronics, significantly contributing to Germany’s High-Tech Agenda and taking advantage of the opportunities offered by the European Chips Act. Europe’s position in microelectronics has broad implications for Germany’s innovation and economic strength, and consequently for its ability to act independently in the face of geopolitical tensions. A systematic development of the microelectronics sector in Germany and Europe is therefore of great interest to the Federal Government. Together with its European partners, Germany holds a promising position to strengthen its innovative capabilities and ensure technological sovereignty and resilience in microelectronics. Research and development, the skilled workforce, and investments in industrial piloting and innovative manufacturing form the basis for international competitiveness and sustainable value creation. Promoting and expanding the existing microelectronics research landscape in Germany lays the foundation to achieve further objectives of the High-Tech Agenda, particularly in key technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), quantum technology, and energy generation.
Germany is the largest microelectronics location in the EU. On one hand, it contributes significantly to European semiconductor production with about 30% of wafer capacity. On the other hand, with its high value-added share in the industrial sector, it fundamentally relies on innovative microelectronics. The sector contributes approximately 4% directly and 15% indirectly to Germany’s GDP. Germany can only compete internationally in microelectronics together with its European partners. The European Chips Act enables coordinated action within the EU in this central key technology.
The microelectronics sector is characterized by particularly high economic dynamism and intensive research efforts, while also being at the center of geopolitical conflicts. Careful attention must be paid to ensure that government measures intervene only where market forces cannot fully operate—for example, due to distortions caused by non-market actions of third countries—or where there is a need to secure technological sovereignty in a challenging geopolitical context, as well as the resilience and reliability of essential supply chains, which cannot be strengthened by private-sector solutions alone. Based on this premise, the Federal Government focuses on the critical success factors of research, skilled workforce, and manufacturing:
Research:
The strategy emphasizes comprehensive “chip design capabilities” and the transfer “from lab to fab,” with a focus on advanced packaging. The Research Fab Microelectronics Germany (FMD) plays a central role in transferring new knowledge into applications, while universities develop know-how for the next technological generation. Chip design and advanced packaging represent key leverage points for technological sovereignty, which can be advanced through government funding of research and development.
Skilled workforce:
A new microelectronics-specific workforce initiative is integrated with research and investment measures, complementing the Federal Government’s general measures for securing skilled personnel. This approach is justified by the expected high demand growth in the microelectronics sector. It is designed to synergize with the industry’s training and recruitment efforts to attract more and better-qualified professionals and to enhance Germany’s appeal as a location for international talent. At the same time, it ensures that investments can succeed.
Manufacturing:
A central element of the strategy is creating incentives for establishing and expanding innovative microelectronics production in Germany—ranging from semiconductor fabrication and advanced packaging to materials, production equipment, and components. The “from lab to fab” transfer is to be consistently pursued. Given market growth and intensified global subsidy competition, the focus is on increasing Germany’s attractiveness as a site for sovereign value creation in critical semiconductors (and associated technology nodes down to a few nanometers) and components. This is supported by strengthening local demand from chip-using industries as well as developing their design capabilities and system competence.
Research, workforce, and manufacturing must be considered together more than before, and measures must be coordinated from an innovation-economic perspective. The current and future needs of existing industries in Germany and Europe, as well as emerging value creation fields—from AI and data centers to quantum computers and trusted electronics for secure infrastructure and defense—must be specifically developed technologically and economically exploited. This is a decisive contribution to securing long-term prosperity by realizing the inherent growth potential. Only in this way can Germany remain an attractive destination for investors and top talent, and only in this way can public resources be used efficiently and effectively.
The strategy integrates measures and guiding concepts into a comprehensive framework. It further develops and expands the Federal Government’s ongoing initiatives. The strategy aims to strengthen Germany’s microelectronics ecosystem as an innovation engine for the entire economy, taking into account improvements in overarching location factors, international networking, as well as research and economic security. It thus also contributes to technological and geopolitical sovereignty, the protection of prosperity and employment, and the economic resilience of Germany and Europe.
Based on this strategy, all relevant national actors are called upon to align and expand their measures in a synergistic manner. In addition to the Federal Ministry of Finance (BMF) and the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK) as the central federal ministries in this area, companies, research institutions, educational institutions, associations, clusters/networks, and the federal states are responsible for contributing.
The full article is available in German here.