The US semiconductor industry could face a shortage of as many as 157,000 specialised workers and technicians by 2030, potentially slowing the country’s rapid expansion of domestic chip manufacturing, according to a report.
The findings, published jointly by McKinsey and the SEMI Foundation, come as leading artificial intelligence companies, including OpenAI and Anthropic, debate how to manage the risks associated with increasingly capable AI models.
The semiconductor workforce challenge is emerging alongside tighter US immigration policies under the Trump administration, with new restrictions affecting several categories of foreign workers and applicants.
The measures include increased scrutiny of H-1B applications and dependents, employment-based permanent residency applications and existing travel permissions. A proposed H-1B filing charge of $103,265 has also raised concerns about the ability of companies to bring in specialised talent.
Industry executives have warned that the restrictions could further strain an already limited pool of skilled workers.
“I’m concerned. We just don’t see that there’s enough technical people in the pipeline,” Jon Taylor, executive vice president of Samsung’s semiconductor division in Austin, Texas, told CNBC.
McKinsey data showed that only about three per cent of engineering graduates in the US enter the semiconductor industry each year. As a result, 73 per cent of semiconductor employers reportedly face significant difficulties recruiting the workers they need.
The shortage comes as the US accelerates efforts to expand domestic semiconductor production and reduce reliance on overseas manufacturing.
Several major chipmakers are already establishing or expanding fabrication operations in the country. In Arizona, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company and Intel are producing advanced logic chips at their fabrication facilities.
Samsung is also preparing to begin domestic logic-chip production at the first of two planned facilities in Taylor, Texas, later this year.
The company has committed $35bn to the regional project and expects the two facilities to create about 3,500 jobs.
Taylor said Samsung was competing with other companies for the same limited pool of skilled workers as new facilities come online.
“We’re hiring engineers, we’re hiring technicians, we’re hiring people in supply chain. Everybody wants and needs the same thing, and it’s a bit of a race against time right now as everything is starting to come online,” Taylor added.
The US played a major role in the development of semiconductor technology and remains a leader in chip architecture. However, much of the world’s commercial chip manufacturing shifted to Asia decades ago, resulting in the development of large and experienced semiconductor talent pools across the region.
US manufacturers are now looking abroad to help fill workforce gaps.
Micron, the Idaho-based memory chip manufacturer, has conducted recruitment drives at technical schools in South Korea, where it interviewed potential workers and, in some cases, made immediate full-time job offers for positions at its Asian operations.
The widening gap between demand for semiconductor specialists and the available workforce could therefore become a major challenge for US companies seeking to expand chip production rapidly, particularly as access to international talent becomes more difficult.
