SkyWater Technology, Inc. is an American semiconductor engineering and fabrication foundry, based in Bloomington, Minnesota.[2][3] It is the only US-owned pure-play silicon foundry.[4]
History
The company was formed in 2017, when private equity firm Oxbow Industries acquired Cypress Foundry Solutions, a microelectronics fabricator that was previously a subsidiary of California-based Cypress Semiconductor Corp.[5][6]
In early 2021, SkyWater acquired an additional chip factory in Osceola, Florida,[7] repurposing the University of Central Florida NeoCity fabrication facility into a second fabrication site.[8] It expanded its facility and added 100 new jobs in 2021, partially due to funding from the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development.[9] SkyWater Technology acquired Infineon Technologies' 200mm semiconductor fab in Austin, Texas on June 30, 2025, adding approximately 1,000 employees to SkyWater's workforce. [10]
Initial public offering
SkyWater Technology filed an initial public offering with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in March 2021.[11][12][13]
U.S. infrastructure investment
SkyWater has been cited as an example of the infrastructure the Biden administration is investing in. On April 12, 2021, President Joe Biden held up a silicon wafer created by SkyWater while saying chips represents a form of infrastructure.[14][15]
On July 20, 2022, Skywater announced plans to invest 1.8 billion dollars into a manufacturing facility in West Lafayette, Indiana, but the company has since backed out of those plans due to a shortage of funding. [16] The facility is within Purdue University's Discovery Park District.[17][18]
Acquisition
On January 26, 2026, quantum computing company IonQ agreed to buy Skywater for $1.8 billion.[19]
Technology
SkyWater produces semiconductor chips using 90-nanometer process technology on equipment designed to handle 200-millimeter wafers of silicon.[20][21] SkyWater works in the consumer, industrial, military & defense, and automotive industries.[22] SkyWater is a Department of Defense-accredited Trusted supplier, part of the DOD's efforts to secure a supply chain within the United States.[23][24]
SkyWater has collaborated with Efabless and Google to create the first open source chip manufacturing program.[25]
On August 21, 2021, SkyWater announced an expanded partnership with Rockley Photonics Holdings, focused on Rockley's health monitoring solution.[26]
External links
References
- https://www.eetimes.com/skywater-ceo-expands-technology-foundry-model/^
- Patrick Rehkamp. Bloomington-based SkyWater Technology files to go public Minneapolis St Paul Business Journal^
- Semiconductor manufacturer SkyWater Technology sets terms for $75 million IPO Renaissance Capital^
- Samuel K Moore. The Foundry at the Heart of DARPA's Plan to Let Old Fabs Beat New Ones IEEE Spectrum, 6 August 2018^
- Mark Reilly. SkyWater Technology finishes Bloomington HQ expansion for 'rad-hard' chips Minneapolis St. Paul Business Journals^
- Willy Shih. Inside SkyWater Technology's Domestic Semiconductor Foundry Forbes^
- Evan Ramstad. SkyWater shares rise 20% as execs explain move to expand production capacity Star Tribune^
- Charlie Reed. NeoCity back in business with tech firm replacing UCF Around Osceola^
- Tom Hauser. Walz supports federal legislation to boost computer chip manufacturing KSTP^
- SkyWater Completes Acquisition of Fab 25 SkyWater Technology, 2024-12-31, retrieved 2025-07-08^
- George Leopold. SkyWater is Latest Tech IPO EE Times^
- David Manners. SkyWater to IPO Electronics Weekly, 26 March 2021^
- Semiconductor manufacturer SkyWater Technology files for a $75 million IPO Nasdaq^
- Naoatsu Aoyma. Niche chip maker SkyWater plays key role in U.S. supply strategy The Asahi Shimbun^
- Stephen Nellis. Biden's chip dreams face reality check of supply chain complexity Reuters, 13 April 2021^
- Original microchip plant no longer coming to West Lafayette WLFI, April 5, 2024^
- SkyWater Technology chooses Discovery Park District at Purdue for $1.8B semiconductor fabrication facility, to create 750 jobs in 5 years^
- Don Clark. U.S. Pours Money Into Chips, but Even Soaring Spending Has Limits The New York Times, 2023-01-01, retrieved 2023-01-23^
- Lauren Thomas. Quantum-Computing Company IonQ to Buy Chip Maker SkyWater for $1.8 Billion The Wall Street Journal, 2026-01-26, retrieved 2026-01-30^
- Samuel K Moore. The Foundry at the Heart of DARPA's Plan to Let Old Fabs Beat New Ones IEEE Spectrum, 6 August 2018^
- Mark Lapedus. 200mm Demand Surges Semiconductor Engineering, 17 December 2020^
- SkyWater Technology Foundry, Inc. OxBow Industries^
- Arthur Herman. Biden, Semiconductors, And America's Future Forbes^
- Amit Chowdry. SkyWater Technology Shares Increase Over 10% Pre-Market: Why It Happened Pulse 2, 24 August 2021^
- Gareth Halfacree. Google, SkyWater Release Production Dev Kit, Offer Open Hardware Projects Free 130nm Manufacturing Hackster.IO^
- Manisha Chatterjee. After Announcing an Expanded Partnership, is SkyWater Technology a Buy? Yahoo News^