European lawmakers urge Commission to move quickly on Chips Act 2.0

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By Toby Sterling and Nathan Vifflin

AMSTERDAM (Reuters) – Members of the European Parliament on Monday urged the European Commission to launch a new support programme for the region’s semiconductor industry targeting investment in AI chips and other technological gaps.

“Recent geopolitical developments have shown that Europe cannot take continued access to advanced technologies for granted,” a letter authored by representatives of three major factions in parliament and signed by 54 lawmakers said.

“We must take active steps to make the EU attractive as an R&D, production and investment location,” it said, criticising progress made under the original 2023 Chips Act as “too slow”.

The plea from the lawmakers follows a similar call from top European chip industry firms last week.

The Commission has yet to detail plans for the semiconductor industry, though it has said it intends to launch five packages this year spurring European investment, notably in AI.

The letter addressed to Commission digital chief Henna Virkkunen said it was unfortunate those packages do not address semiconductors, as chips are “at the heart of the EU’s industrial ambitions”.

A spokesperson for Virkkunen’s office could not immediately respond.

The first EU Chips Act prompted a wave of investment, but failed to attract advanced chipmakers after Intel shelved plans for a large new factory in Germany.

Addressing that, and other shortcomings, has become more urgent in light of “current geopolitical realities,” the letter said.

Europe needs to “protect its champions from the consequences of extraterritoriality and the ever-escalating competition between the United States and China,” the letter said.

Extraterritoriality refers to the practice of a country enforcing national laws outside its own jurisdiction.

(Reporting by Toby Sterling. Editing by Mark Potter)