From Skills to Photonics: a New Wave of Chip Initiatives Strengthening the Semiconductor Landscape in Europe
The European semiconductor sector is under continuous expansion. A series of new initiatives, from a Slovenian competence centre to a Bavarian AI chip R&D center and a photonic factory in Belgium, show how different corners of the continent are contributing to a stronger, more resilient chip ecosystem.
The timing is deliberate. With the EU Chips Act aiming to double Europe’s global market share to 20% by 2030, these initiatives demonstrate that Europe’s strategy is not just about megafabs. It is also about regional strengths, collaboration, and building depth across the supply value chain.
Ljubljana: Slovenia Bets on Chip Knowledge and Skills
Slovenia, a country known for its green technologies and niche manufacturing, has officially entered the semiconductor stage with the launch of KC Čip.si project, a new competence centre dedicated to chips and semiconductor technologies.
With the main contact point at the Faculty of Electrical Engineering, University of Ljubljana, and spread across several locations, the centre is part of a Europe-wide network of 27 chip hubs. Its mission: to develop expertise, improve access to cutting-edge tools, and support businesses, in particular SMEs and start-ups, in navigating chip technologies.
Coordinator Janez Krč explained at the launch that the centre will focus on niche electronic chips, photonic and quantum chips, while also providing a bridge between research, education, and industry.
Importantly, the centre will be backed by a forthcoming national programme on semiconductor technologies, running until 2030. The KC Čip.si project is funded by the Ministry of Digital Transformation and the European Joint Undertaking for Chips (Chips JU).
Munich: TSMC Anchors AI Chip Research in Bavaria
In Germany, the spotlight falls on Munich. TSMC partners with Bavaria to establish the Munich Advanced-Technology Center for High-Tech AI Chips (MACHT-AI) in partnership with the Technical University of Munich (TUM).
The centre will research customised, high-performance chips for applications ranging from artificial intelligence to automotive and industrial IoT. By placing the hub in Bavaria, TSMC gains proximity to Germany’s automotive giants, which increasingly rely on advanced semiconductors for electric and autonomous vehicles.
MACHT-AI is set to become more than a research lab: it is a potential talent pipeline, a bridge between academia and industry, and a signal of Europe’s intent to close gaps in design and R&D expertise.
Overall, the initiative underscores a strategic shift: not just building fabs, but cultivating the design and innovation capacity to shape the chips of the future in Europe.
Oudenaarde: Belgium Opens Europe’s First Photonic Chip Factory
If Slovenia brings skills and Germany design, Belgium is betting on manufacturing the chips of tomorrow. In Oudenaarde, Flanders, Thema Foundries has announced a €200 million investment to open Europe’s first fully integrated photonic chip factory.
Photonic chips, which use light instead of electrons, are widely seen as the next frontier by promising faster speeds and lower energy consumption, crucial for data centres, telecommunications, and future AI workloads.
The factory will create around 500 highly skilled jobs and is backed by collaboration with imec, which is also a member of the Industrial Alliance on Processors and Semiconductor Technologies, New Photonics, and Ghent University. It positions Flanders not just as a semiconductor hub, but as a pioneer in deep tech specialisation with global appeal.
A Continental Strategy of Complementary Strengths
What unites these initiatives is diversity and a common goal. Slovenia invests in knowledge networks, Germany leverages its industrial and academic ecosystem, and Belgium builds capacity in a future-oriented niche. Together, they reflect a European strategy that values distributed innovation.
For Europe, strengthening semiconductors is not just about self-sufficiency in times of geopolitical uncertainty. It is also about shaping the technologies, such as AI, quantum, photonics to smartly define the next decade.
The map of European chip innovation is widening. And with each new competence centre, research hub, and innovative project, the Europe’s semiconductor ecosystem is becoming strategically stronger.
Learn more about how the Industrial Alliance on Processors and Semiconductor Technologies is also contributing to strengthening the ecosystem through its Working Groups on Skills, Supply Chain and PFAS.